Mirror Images
by gay.panic97
Summary: Regina accidentally separates herself magically, unleashing two of her past selves onto Storybrooke. Emma must help her reverse the spell and come to terms with her past, as well as their own complex relationship. Sorry I suck at summaries. SwanQueen. Rated M for language, possibly SMUT.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: My first ever fanfic post. Sort of AU in a way, just an idea that I had kind of spring-boarding off of the Regina/Evil Queen split, but on a different level. If I had to place this contextually, it'd probably be around the fourth season. Hook and Emma relationship is a no-go because fuck that bullshit. Robin has left to be with his wife, who, in this case, was definitely not Zelena in disguise but the real deal. So, he's out, and he won't be back. I've had enough of either of those unconvincing hetero relationships shoved down my throat over the past seven seasons (shots fired). I think that's all the prelude needed. Hope you guys enjoy, and be sure to leave me some feedback.

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1

The sky was painted an overcast gray when Emma Swan parked her Volkswagen in front of the mayoral mansion. She peered up at it with a heavy sigh, drumming her fingers on the steering wheel a moment. Typically, a summons from the mayor to her home would've had Emma racing, as it only meant one of two things. Time with Henry and his mother, or time alone with Regina. Both of which greatly appealed to the blonde.

This time was different, though. Emma knew it as soon as she'd heard the older woman's voice over the phone. She'd been sitting in her usual booth at Granny's, her son at her side and her parents across from her when she'd recieved the call. When she glanced down at the screen and saw Regina's picture flashing, her heart had lept into her throat, and she silently prayed her parents wouldn't be opposed to watching Henry a few hours. Maybe even having him stay the night with them.

Emma had accepted the call barely two rings in. "Hello."

"Miss Swan." Regina's voice was uncharacteristically weak, and its raggedly serious tone had informed Emma immediately that this, unfortunately, was not a booty call. "I need to see you."

The blonde furrowed her brow and fiddled with pepper shaker that sat in front of her on the table. "What for?"

"Must you always waste time asking pointless questions?" Regina snapped irritably.

Emma frowned. While she was certainly no stranger to the mayor's ire, it had been quite some time she'd heard _that_ voice. "Whoa. Where'd that come from?"

A ragged sigh sounded over the line. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to... I just really need your help, and I can't really explain it over the phone. It's something you need to see to believe."

The Sheriff paused a moment, fully aware of how her family was watching her curiously. "Alright. I'm on my way."

Fifteen minutes later, she was at the mayor's front door. She lifted her hand to knock but hesitated. Regina didn't know she was there yet. She could still turn tail and run. Buy herself some time before dealing with whatever had the mayor acting so strangely.

She sighed, and her fist rapped against the door. No. She wasn't going anywhere. Regina was upset, and she'd called her for help. Her. Not Gold or anyone else. She wanted her there. Emma didn't kid herself into thinking that wasn't a big step for her and the mayor.

The door was opened by a very stressed-looking Regina Mills. Emma opened her mouth to greet her but was halted when the mayor grabbed her by the arm and jerked inside the house, slamming and locking the door behind her.

"What's going on?" Emma demanded as Regina ushered her into the kitchen. "What's so urgent that you needed me to come here so fast?"

"Something happened," the mayor said, eyes downcast.

Emma frowned suspiciously at the other woman's behavior. Hands clasped in front of her and head hanging low, she bore a striking resemblance to their son whenever he got caught doing something he wasn't supposed to. "What do you mean, something happened? What kind of something?"

"I, um, I was going through some old spell books," Regina explained. "And... I was a bit careless, I suppose."

"Careless?" The blonde repeated. This couldn't be good. "How so?"

"Well, isn't this interesting?"

Both women spun at the velvetlike voice. Regina bore a look of guilt and annoyance at the woman standing in the doorway of her kitchen, while Emma's mouth fell open in shock.

"Regina," she whimpered out, "what did you do?"

"I'm not entirely sure," the mayor muttered.

Emma struggled for her words. "Why am I looking at... you?"

"Please, do not compare me to that pathetic fool," the other Regina waved her hand. Her dark hair was piled on top of her head in an intricate updo that Emma supposed must take hours to accomplish, and the jewel-encrusted, black-and-red gown she wore had a low dip in the front to fully expose her shameless cleavage. Cleavage which, at the moment, Emma was having a very hard time tearing her eyes away from.

"I'm not sure what happened to me in this land," she continued as she stalked forward. Emma couldn't help but wonder how she walked so easily in those sky-high heels, "but this 'Madame Mayor' has lost all of the fire that made me so deliciously me."

"Shut up," Regina snapped at herself. "Trust me, dear, I've still got plenty of fire." Holding her palm out, she conjured a fireball in it and smiled with bared teeth. "Perhaps I should give you an up-close-and-personal view of it, hm?"

"Regina," Emma said, placing a hand on her shoulder softly. The mayor glanced over at her, her fireball diminishing slightly, while the darker woman before them absorbed the scene with eager eyes. "That's not a great idea."

"Why not?" She demanded.

"Because you split yourself, apparently," the blonde sighed, "and we've got no clue what that entails. If you kill this Regina, you could be hurt, too. And I'm not okay with that."

"You're not?" The queen asked, taking a step closer to Emma. The blonde turned and faced her with what she meant to be courage, but she was still honestly having an incredible amount of trouble keeping her eyes from raking over that tightly-encased body. "My, my. Very interesting indeed. The Savior cares for the Evil Queen."

"I'm not the Evil Queen," Regina spat back, placing a hand on Emma's arm and pulling her back slightly away from the other woman. Her eyes bore furiously into her counterpart's, while the queen simply smiled back maliciously. "Not anymore."

"Right," she snorted. "You've _changed_. You might be able to convince others of that, dear, but not me. I've been inside that twisted little head of yours, remember?"

"Why is it so difficult to believe she's changed for the better?" Emma questioned.

The queen's eyes flickered back to her, and the smile that had faltered slightly returned to its fiery fullness. "Because, dear, if there is one thing both she and I know, it's that people do not truly change from who they are. Deep down, your lovely mayor here is the same dark, perverse soul as me. She's just learned how to cover it up in tasteless pantsuits." She sneered at Regina, who crossed her arms furiously. The mayor had not realized how biting and, frankly, annoying she had been in the other land. She was beginning to understand why the people had given her the "Evil Queen" moniker after all. "She's boring now, unfortunately and doesn't interest me at all." The queen grinned at Emma widely, dark pools of brown eyes burning with glee. "You, on the other hand, my dear Savior, interest me quite a lot."

"Excuse me?" Emma frowned.

Before either Regina or Emma could blink, the queen thrust her hand out, plunging it into the Savior's chest, and squeezed her fingers around her beating heart. Emma's mouth opened in a silent scream, her breath wheezing out, while Regina immediately conjured another fireball. The queen pulled the glowing organ from Emma's chest and stared down at it with wild, glinting eyes.

"The heart of the Savior," she mused, turning it over in the palm of her hand. "The product of True Love. The hope for everyone's happily ever after's." Her face fell slightly. "It's a bit darker than I'd imagined it would be." Judging by the tone in her voice, that was far more of exciting to her than disappointing.

"Put it back!" Regina seethed at herself, and the queen looked up at her with a replaced grin.

"Touchy, aren't we?" She laughed. "Honestly, dear, I would've thought that you'd be dying to get yours hands on this." Her eyes shot back to Emma, who was frozen into place. "Wrap your fingers around it tight and just-" She squeezed the heart in her hand, and the blonde reacted immediately. Her chest constricted, and she felt as though her entire sternum would burst from the pressure. With a strangled cry of pain, Emma doubled over. A rush of hot moisture sprang into her eyes, and she tried with everything inside of her to hold it back.

" _Put it back!_ " Regina repeated, and her voice was tagged with panic as she glanced from the queen to Emma. Her hand found the blonde's shoulder, hoping to somehow alleviate the pain.

"Such concern for someone you hate," the queen taunted. "Or, do you hate her? She's the one who broke our curse after all and tried to take Henry from us."

"You know nothing," Regina shot back to her, and she practically shook with rage. "I am not the same person as you. I no longer wield hate as a weapon. I let go of that part of me a long time ago. Now, put her heart back before I turn you to a pile of smoldering ash."

The queen smirked. "And why on earth would I do that when I'm enjoying how it beats so hard in my hand?"

"Please." Emma's strained, pleading voice caught both women's attention. She looked up at the queen with green eyes that glistened with agony. There was something else in those eyes, though. Something that the queen found she couldn't fully place. "Please, Regina. Don't do this. You're better than this."

"What makes you think so?" The queen countered, though some of her previous conviction had shaken away. "I'm not the same woman as her."

Emma shook her head. "Not entirely, no, but I think you were right about one thing: people don't totally change from who they once were. You and Regina might be split by magic, but you're still Regina. And I know you. You've come too far to do this. So, please, don't."

There was a moment of subdued silence as the queen glowered down at the Savior. It was something she hadn't expected, and something she had not seen in a very long time. Someone had faith in her. Someone trusted her to do the right thing. Though she wouldn't admit it, the queen felt something in her stomach tighten when she saw the hope for her so strong in those slate eyes.

Slowly, she loosened her grip on Emma's heart, and the blonde stood upright again with a relieved sigh as some of the tension in her chest passed. There was still a disturbing emptiness that, strangely enough, felt heavy to her. While the organ no longer resided in her chest, she felt the loss like an anvil on her ribcage, threatening to shatter her.

"Killing you so soon would be regrettable," the queen claimed with practiced indifference. "You're the only thing I've seen so far in this land that doesn't bore me to tears." She cocked her head to the side. "So, congratulations, Savior. You get to live to be the hero another day." She reached her hand back into Emma's chest and replaced her heart. Emma gasped for air at its return, chest rolling. Somehow, she was now more aware of the organ. She felt and heard its beating clearly, more appreciatively.

She gulped the lump in her throat away, and looked between the women before her. "Two Regina's. This is certainly going to be interesting."

"Actually," the mayor said, crushing the fire in her hand and looking sheepishly at the ground, "not two. Three."

Emma's eyes nearly bulged out of her head. "There are three of you?" Regina nodded. "Well, where's the other one?"

"She ran away," the brunette said. "She's rather timid."

"A coward and a fool," the queen corrected coldly.

"Wait," Emma shook her head. "So, you're the Storybrooke Regina. You're the Evil Queen Regina." She looked between them. "Who's this other Regina?"

"It's the me that existed before the crown and before magic," Regina answered, wringing her hands in front of her. "A younger, more naive version of myself. Uncorrupted."

"Well, shouldn't we find her?" The blonde said. "I mean, she's scared and in a strange place. Anything could happen. She could get seriously hurt out there."

"Bo-ring," the queen chimed in a sing-song voice, and they both glowered at her. "It's as if all you people ever think about is saving someone or something. Honestly, it's quite exhausting and dull." Her smile returned. "I think it's time for me to explore this town further and see what it has to offer me."

"Don't you dare," Regina threatened.

The queen twinkled her fingers at the two of them. "Ta-ta, darlings." Before either of the women could stop her, she disappeared in a swirl of purple smoke, leaving the sweet, spicy scent of her magic behind.

"Well, that's awesome," Emma mumbled. "We just unleashed the Evil Queen on all of Storybrooke."

"Are you alright?" Regina asked, resting a hand on the blonde's shoulder. The touch made Emma shudder slightly, and she looked at the woman by her side. "She didn't... hurt you, did she?"

"I'm fine," Emma replied with a small, reassuring smile. "It was more a shock that anything." She rubbed her chest at the memory of that ghostly hand thrusting inside it, of those perfectly manicured nails digging into her heart, and winced. "I've heard a lot of stories about the Evil Queen, and, I've got to say, she certainly lives up to the hype."

"She's a monster," Regina said darkly. "We have to stop her. Whatever she has planned, it isn't good."

Emma furrowed her brow. "How do you know she's got anything planned at all?"

"Because I was her once upon a time," the brunette answered. "I know her head. She always has an agenda."

"We'll have to worry about that later," Emma sighed. "For now, we should focus on finding the other you. Any idea where she might have gone?"

Regina shook her head. "No clue. Unfortunately, that me has been gone for a very, very long time. While I know the Evil Queen like the back of my hand, the me before that is-well-a stranger to me."

"So, she could be anywhere?" The Sheriff deduced, and Regina nodded. "Okay, then. In that case, we should probably split up for time's sake." She started for the door, but the mayor didn't move. Emma looked back at her. "What's wrong?"

"I don't like the idea of splitting up," Regina said shortly, a strange tick in her voice.

The other woman frowned at her with a tilt of her head. Her lips pulled down at the edges curiously, and her eyes tightened as she tried to read the mayor. It was the look that made Regina's stomach dip. "Why not?"

"Because..." The brunette sighed in defeat. "Because the Evil Queen is out there somewhere, and I'd like to keep you where I know you're safe."

Emma's expression softened, and she smiled gently. "Regina, I can handle myself. I'd think, after everything we've been through, you'd know that by now."

"I do," the mayor muttered, crossing her arms over her chest. "It's just... this isn't like all the other threats we've faced. This is me."

"I fought a firebreathing dragon," Emma teased. "I think you might be overestimating yourself if you think I can't take you, too."

Regina glowered at her, mouth pulled in a tight line. Emma's eyes lingered on the small scar above her just above her upper lip, and, not for the first time, she found herself wanting to touch it. Kiss it. "This is serious, Miss Swan."

Emma shook the fantasy away from her mind. "I know it is, Regina, but you've got to trust me. The only way we're going to be able to handle this is if we're on the same team." She smiled. "Besides, we already know she isn't going to kill me. I'm the only thing that doesn't bore her, remember?"

Regina rolled her eyes at the pride the Sheriff seemed to take from this. "She'll get over that quickly enough. She's never satisifed."

Emma tried to ignore how that statement slapped her across the face, leaving a sting that she couldn't entirely dismiss. Her expression steeled, and she headed for the door with Regina following behind her. "Well, when that happens, we'll deal with it."

The two women split up outside with Regina getting into her Benz and Emma retreating to the yellow Bug waiting on the curb. Regina assigned herself the northern half of Storybrooke, and Emma agreed to search the southern end. Both women knew that it wasn't going to be easy. The third Regina could literally be anywhere in the town. Locating her would be time-consuming and exhausting, but they had to do it. The Evil Queen on the loose was bad enough; who knew how people would react if they saw a third version of the mayor wandering around town? And this version had no magic at her disposal to defend herself if need be.

While Regina would be driving through the heart of town in her route, Emma was left to the countryside mostly, scanning shadowed forests and flat, open expanses of grass. However, her heart wasn't entirely in the search.

Regina's words continued to bounce through her mind. _She'll get over that quickly enough. She's never satisfied._ The statement shouldn't have bothered her so much-Regina had certainly said worse to her before-but it did. While the mayor seemed to be of the mind that she and the queen were completely different people, Emma knew better. The Evil Queen may have been a past version of Regina, but she was still part of Regina. They were still, essentially, the same person. And Emma couldn't help but wonder how long it would be before the mayor herself grew tired of her company.

"Get real, Swan," she mumbled to herself as she drove. "She'd have to actually give a damn about you to begin with to get bored of you."

The two women had been carrying on a secret psuedo-relationship for a few months. First, it began as simple friendship. They were drinking buddies, comforting and listening to each other. When a night of drinking morphed into a night of passionate release, however, things had changed between the two. Something had clicked. While Emma had confessed to having a physical attraction to the mayor since the very first time she'd seen her, this was more. This wasn't just physical. It went deeper than that, cutting through her skin and piercing her straight through. While Regina seemed to hold a fondness for the blonde and certainly an appreciation for her body, Emma couldn't help but feel like she was little more than a safety blanket for the mayor to cling to while she was still dealing with the pain of Robin Hood's departure from Storybrooke with his wife and son. Something Emma still felt absolutely terrible for causing in the first place. Regina claimed to have forgiven and forgotten the incident, but Emma knew she still held resentment towards her for it. Forgiving herself had turned out to be the hardest part. So, she never pressed the other woman into defining their relationship. Even though she longed to see Regina in more places than simply the bedroom, Emma never voiced her desires to the mayor. She owed her, and, to help make up for the pain she'd unintentionally caused her, she would be and do whatever Regina needed from her.

The Sheriff was so lost in thought that she nearly missed the flash of powder blue among the vivid green of a fenced pasture to her right. Stomping her foot on the brakes in the middle of the road, she stared out her window. Standing by the fence, her back to Emma, was a woman. Long, raven-black hair fell down her back in a tight braid. She wore a blue peacoat over tan riding pants and darker brown boots. On the other side of the fence there stood a tall, chestnut-colored horse with a white stripe on its face. The woman stroked the horse's snout with a leather-gloved hand, and the animal leaned into her touch pleasantly. Though she had yet to see her face, somehow Emma knew that was the Regina she was looking for.

Stepping out of the car that she left parked in the middle of the deserted road, Emma slowly approached the woman who was still none the wiser to her presence. A knot of anxiety formed in her stomach. She had no idea what to expect from the young woman ahead of her. She'd known plenty about the Evil Queen not only from her son's book but from her own brief experience in the other world. She'd had an idea of what to expect from her. This woman, though, Emma had not the faintest clue as to how she would behave. The stories had always focused on the evil Regina. Her sins and her anger. No one ever spoke of what she'd been like before, not even the mayor herself. Was the burning hatred still present in this younger woman? Would she attack Emma on the spot? Try to kill her, even?

A twig snapped under Emma's foot as she crossed the grass, and the woman ahead of her stiffened. In an instant, she spun around. The Sheriff stood, rooted to the spot, and gaped. She'd never imagined how Regina might have looked when she was younger. The woman could not have been much more than twenty. Her face was bare of all makeup, yet still undeniably beautiful, and her chocolate-colored eyes seemed to melt like wax under a flame. There was a softness to her that was foreign to both the queen and the mayor. A gentility that Emma had never seen on Regina before.

After a moment of silence, Emma managed a small, dazed smile at the woman in front of her and one breathy syllable. "Hi."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you guys for such a great response to the first chapter of this. Your reviews and messages and follows/favorites are seriously encouraging. I've got an idea where I think I want this to go, and the next couple of chapters should come up soon since I've already written them. No idea how long this will end up, but please continue to review and follow along. Thanks again!

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2

"Stay away from me!"

The younger Regina reached inside her coat and extracted a small, yet sharp dagger. She brandished it with uncertain hands, pointing the tip at Emma. Behind her, the horse let out a shrieking whinny before galloping away from the fenceline in alarm.

"Whoa," the Sheriff said, holding her hands up in surrender. "Take it easy. I'm not going to hurt you."

"Who are you?" She demanded. "What is this strange land, and how did I get here?"

Emma took a cautious step forward. "Regina, calm down. Just put the knife down, and we'll talk, alright?"

The younger woman tried to keep her expression stony, but she stepped back further towards the fence at Emma's advance. Her eyes betrayed her, revealing the intense fear she felt, and Emma ached to dismiss that terror. To help this poor, scared girl.

"How do you know my name?" Regina questioned.

"I know you," Emma answered, and the girl raised an eyebrow at her. "Well, a version of you. My name is Emma Swan, and I'm your friend, Regina. I promise. Please, put the knife down."

The girl hesitated. "How do I know I can trust you?"

"Look in my eyes," the blonde urged her, and the russet gaze clashed with green. "I'm not going to hurt you. I want to help you."

Regina stared at her a moment longer before she hesitantly lowered the glinting knife. Emma sighed in relief. After having her heart ripped out by one Regina already today, she really had not liked the idea of being run through by another.

"Emma Swan," the brunette said. "You said that was your name?" The Sheriff nodded. "I'm Regina Mills."

"I know, "Emma said.

"Right," Regina frowned. "How... How did I get here? One moment I was home in the stables and the next... I'm here." She looked at her surroundings with a furrowed brow. "In this strange, strange land."

"It's called Storybrooke," the blonde informed. "It's a town in Maine." Regina furrowed her brow as if Emma was speaking a foreign language. Which, the Savior realized, she probably was to the girl. "I know it's all confusing now, but you kind of created this town through magic."

"Magic?" Regina shook her head. "I don't like magic. It's terrifying."

"You don't like magic now," Emma corrected her, "but one day, you're going to cast a curse over your entire land and banish everyone here to take away their happy endings."

The girl's mouth fell open. "Why... Why would I ever do something so cruel?"

Emma chewed on her lower lip. "It's kind of hard to explain. You did something bad, but you did have cause for it. Even though you were misguided, you thought it would make you happy. A lot of things happened, and you were hurt. You wanted revenge."

"Revenge?" She questioned. "Revenge for what?"

The Sheriff paused. "For a lot of things, I think. You were angry at your mother. And mine, too."

"Your mother? I don't even know her."

"You kind of do." Emma prodded at the ground awkwardly with the toe of her boot. "She's sort of your... stepdaughter." It was extremely unsettling to say the word.

"Snow?" Regina said, and the other woman nodded. "But how is that possible? She's just a child."

"It's hard to explain," the Savior sighed. "Honestly, I don't fully understand it either. You've tried to explain it all to me a million times before, but I'm still foggy on the concept. All I can say is magic is some crazy shit." She looked back at Regina's lost expression and thought a moment. What all had happened to this Regina? Had Snow spilled her secret and caused Cora to kill Daniel? Did this Regina even know Daniel yet? She had to be very careful what she said for fear of overwhelming the poor girl. "You wanted to make my mother pay for betraying you and costing you something you held dear."

The girl's eyes darkened with a burning rage she hadn't seemed capable of before. "Daniel."

Emma nodded. "Yeah. So, you learned how to use magic from Rumpelstiltskin and bided your time for revenge. It took a long time, but you eventually cast the, um, what was it you called it? The 'curse to end all curses.'" She sighed at the younger woman who barely even resembled the town's mayor. "Listen, I know it's a lot to take in. You're probably freaking out right now. I know I was when I found out about all of this. It's going to be okay, though. We're going to sort all this out and get you back home where you belong."

"How?" Regina asked her.

The Savior shrugged. "I have no clue yet, but we'll figure something out." She reached her hand out to the girl. "Trust me?"

Regina's eyes flickered from Emma's face to her hand for a few long moments before finally taking the Sheriff's proffered hand and nodding. "Yes."

Emma smiled at her. "Good. Now, let's get you out of here. Are you hungry?"

It took far too long to convince the young woman that the vehicle parked on the road wasn't a dragon in disguise that would consume her, but Emma managed to coax her into the passenger's seat eventually. Starting the engine caused another fuss from the woman beside her, but Emma soothed her by turning the radio on a classical station. Before driving off, she sent a text message to Regina telling her that she'd found her third self and would be at Granny's in twenty minutes. She didn't wait for a response before pulling a U-turn and heading back for town.

"So, we're friends here in this land?" Regina questioned, and Emma glanced over at her.

"Uh, yeah, more or less," she shrugged her shoulders.

"We've always been friends?" The younger woman pressed.

Emma chuckled. "No. Not at all. We absolutely hated each other at first."

"Why?" The brunette asked, furrowing her brow curiously and folding her hands neatly in her lap.

"It's kind of a long story," the Sheriff replied. "I don't want to throw too much on you at one time."

Regina set her jaw. "I can handle it. I assure you that I am tougher than I may first appear."

"Alright," Emma yielded to her. "If you say so. In this world, you and I kind of have a son together."

Her jaw dropped in awe. "This land must be quite strange indeed if you and I could... concieve a child together."

The Savior couldn't stop a snort of laughter. "No, not like that. Biologically, he's my kid, but I had him young and gave him up for adoption. You adopted him. A few years ago, he found me and brought me back here to break the curse. You and I didn't get off on the best foot."

"What's his name?" Regina inquired.

Emma smiled over at her softly. "Henry."

The brunette gasped, and a smile came over her gentle lips as she looked ahead out the windshield. "Henry. He must be wonderful."

"He is," Emma conceded, turning her attention back to the road. "Absolutely amazing. You did a great job raising him."

"It sounds as if he's the one thing I managed to get right." There was a frown on the younger woman's face, and it hurt Emma to see her so forlorned. Reaching out, she covered Regina's hand with her own and gave it a supportive squeeze.

"Not the only thing," she told her, and the girl smiled back in appreciation, but she was clearly not convinced.

Emma parked in front of Granny's and stepped out. She hurried over to the other side and opened the door for her passenger, who was too scared to even try and work the door handle. When she got out of the car and caught all the confused eyes trained on her from those passing by, she clung to Emma's arm like a lost child.

"Why are they looking at me like that?" She whispered.

Emma smirked slightly. "Because, believe it or not, they're more freaked out right now than you are." She looked down at the girl. "Come on. I'm starved."

The two entered the diner together and sat down in a back booth away from prying eyes. Ruby came and took their orders with a confused expression, but thankfully spared them any questions. Emma ordered for the two of them, a pair of grilled cheese sandwiches and curly fries to share, and the waitress left them.

Emma looked at the woman across from her sympathetically. "How are you holding up?"

"Narrowly," she answered. "Everything here is so different from anything I've ever known before."

"I know," the blonde nodded. "It's a lot. But, let me tell you, Granny's grilled cheese is magic in its own right. Cures any and everything." The younger Regina laughed a light, bubbly giggle that reminded Emma of the mayor's own. "Hey, there's the laugh I like to hear so much. We'll work this out-just keep your head up, Regina."

"How can I not when I'm around you?" She said back, and Emma was embarassed by the warmth that pinkened her cheeks. This Regina was so refreshingly open and honest. The defenses that Emma had gotten so used to chipping away at day in and day out, often without making any progress, didn't surround this younger woman, and she was freer in expressing her emotions and thoughts. "Promise me something, Emma. Promise me that you won't leave me. This place is frightening, and you're the only one I can trust here."

The Sheriff nodded her head without hesitation. "I promise, Regina. I'll stick by you through this." The brunette smiled warmly.

"What a lovely little scene this is."

The cold, callous voice made Emma's fists clench, and she was on her feet in an instant. The diner fell eerily silent in fear and shock as the Evil Queen appeared in a plume of shimmering smoke before them all. The younger Regina stood as well only to cower behind the Savior, one of her hands finding Emma's.

"Who is that?" She whispered. "And why does she look like me?"

"Because she is you," Emma answered, eyeing the queen harshly. "She's the you who cast the curse and caused all this."

"Guilty as charged," the queen beamed proudly, eyes shining with mirth. She looked at her younger self with amused contempt. "She's quite fond of you, isn't she, Savior?"

"What do you want?" Emma demanded, and those inky eyes flashed back at her.

"Can't a girl pop in to say hello?" The queen feigned innocence.

"A girl can," the blonde shrugged her shoulders. "You, however, cannot."

"Oh, come now, Emma," Regina sighed poutily as she stepped closer to the Sheriff. She didn't stop until they stood mere inches from each other, noses nearly touching. The intoxicating scent of magic doused the queen, and it made Emma's breath catch to be so close to her. Green eyes roamed the dangerously beautiful face that was slightly paler than what she was used to, as if powdered heavily. "Don't try and pretend that you and I don't share a connection." Her fingers skated across Emma's chest, circling the spot where she'd only a few hours ago reached inside, and the Sheriff felt her pulse quicken at the touch. "I can see it in your eyes. Deep down, you like me." A grin formed on the queen's face when Emma didn't immediately deny the statement. "Don't worry, dear. Despite your unfortunate parentage by Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, I find you to be most appealing as well."

"Get back," Emma breathed in a voice that even she found unconvincing.

The queen's smile widened gleefully. "You could give into me, Savior, or I could simply force you to." Her palm pressed flat against her chest, and Emma shivered. "It's your choice, dear."

"Get your hands off of her." The voice filled the diner until there was no space left. Its fury was easily heard, but there was more to it as well. A tremor of fear. Concern.

All eyes darted to the front of the diner where the mayor stood with both hands stretched out in an offensive stance. A collective gasp filled the restaurant as gazes swivelled from one Regina to the next. Emma herself found being in the same room with all three forms of the mayor to be overwhelming and staggered back a step while her head swam.

"Are you alright?" The youngest Regina asked, still holding tight to the Sheriff.

"Yeah," Emma said after a moment, shaking her dizziness away. "I'm fine. I thought one Regina was a lot. Three of you? That's fucking intense."

The Evil Queen smirked at her. "Tell us, dear, which one of us is your favorite?"

Emma rolled her eyes at her. "Well, you're a psychotic bitch." Her insult only encouraged the queen's prideful glow. She pointed back to the younger Regina behind her. "This one's too scared of her own shadow to stand up on her own." She looked to the mayor. "And that one... well, that one's complicated."

"This entire situation is complicated," the mayor answered, arms crossing.

"What do we do now?" The younger Regina inquired.

Emma spotted Ruby emerging from the kitchen with her order and dropped back in her booth unceremoniously. "I'm still really fucking hungry, so I don't know about you all, but I'm going to eat." The young girl immediately sat down next to her, pressing herself against the Sheriff timidly.

Emma was surprised when the queen moved and sat directly across from her in the booth. "I could use a drink, actually."

Glancing back at the only Regina left standing, Emma shrugged her shoulders. "May as well join the party, Regina."

The mayor huffed in annoyance before finally walking over to them. Eyeing the queen with loathing, she reluctantly perched herself next to her, careful not to touch her. Ruby brought the two plates of food and took the queen's order for a spiked cider and the mayor's for a black coffee quickly before retreating back into the kitchen. Picking up one half of her sandwich, Emma bit into it. As she chewed, she glanced up at the three sets of brown eyes trained on her and sighed.

"You three are going to have to stop doing that," she said. "This is weird enough already."

The queen smiled. "This must be your most awkward date, I imagine."

Emma shrugged. "I mean, you haven't flipped the table or tried to punch me yet, so no. But it's a pretty close second." She went to take another bite of her sandwich before freezing, eyes sliding back up to the positively giddy queen. "Date?"

"That is what I said," she giggled. The laugh held a more maniacal tone than that of the younger woman or the mayor, but it still sounded familiar to Emma. Still sounded like Regina.

"It's not a date," the Sheriff frowned at her.

"Of course it isn't," the mayor nodded.

"What's a date?" the youngest Regina questioned.

Emma furrowed her brow. "People don't date in the Enchanted Forest?"

"Some people do," the mayor mused, sad eyes on the table. "I didn't."

"We just got sold into marriage to the highest bidder," the queen growled, lip curled in disgust.

"Oh," the blonde mumbled, blushing at her ignorance. "That really sucks."

"Sucks what?" Young Regina piped in again.

"A fat one," Emma answered and busied herself with the fries. "Here. Eat some of these. I got them to share." She glanced up at the other two at the table. "Want some?"

"You know I do not consume that greasy garbage, Miss Swan," the mayor said back sharply. Emma rolled her eys, then held out a long, curly fry out to the Evil Queen.

"Want some?" She asked. With a big smile, the queen leaned across the table and snapped her sharp, white teeth on the fry.

"I want the whole thing, dear," she grinned, arching an eyebrow. The mayor glared at her furiously while Emma simply laughed.

"You failed to mention how sexually charged you used to be," she said to the mayor.

"Things were different in the other world," she said with a frown. "I was a queen without a king in a society that didn't see women as equal to men. I had to use my sexuality as a bargaining chip and weapon more times than I'd care to admit. Seduction is a very powerful tool for manipulation."

"Mhmm," Emma said, and her eyes involuntarily drifted back to the queen's low-cut dress. Knowing precisely where she was looking, the queen leaned further over the table to offer up an even better view of what lay beneath her complex gown. The Sheriff's mouth dried, and she quickly turned her attention back to her food. The mayor did not miss the interaction between the two and scowled at the blonde.

With one Regina trying to seduce her, another holding to her for protection, and yet another frowning at her in disapproval, Emma tried to focus on eating and forget the strange predicament she currently found herself in. The thought kept running through her head.

 _We've got to fix this before I lose my goddamn mind._


	3. Chapter 3

"Does anyone want to explain what the hell is going on?"

Emma groaned into her coffee as she sat down on the sofa in the loft apartment and massaged her temples in the hopes of warding off a burgeoning headache. Her parents were before her, looking expectantly from her to the mayor who stood beside the sofa. David's arms were crossed over his chest while Mary Margaret glowered at the two women with hands on her hips. Henry stood beside his grandparents, brow furrowed in an expression that was nearly identical to his birth mother.

"Please, don't use the 'mom' tone," the Sheriff said back to her mother, resting her elbows on her knees. "It's been a long enough day already, and I am exhausted."

"We're sorry, but this is a little hard to wrap our heads around," David responded. "So... Regina accidentally split herself and brought her past selves to Storybrooke. One of which is the Evil Queen. Am I on the right track?"

"Yep," Emma nodded. "That's pretty much what happpened."

"How are you going to get rid of her?" Mary Margaret demanded. She was visibly upset at the idea of coming face-to-face with the Evil Queen again, which they all understood. After all, if Queen Regina would come after anyone in town, it would be the woman she blamed for ruining her life.

"We're not sure yet," Regina sighed. "I've been looking through my spell books for a solution all day."

"Hopefully, you're looking through them a bit more carefully than before," the blonde muttered, and Regina cut her eyes at her in irritation. "We've both been trying to figure out how to handle this. No dice so far, but we'll find something. Eventually."

"And what damage will the queen cause before then?" Mary Margaret maintained.

"None," Emma snarled. "She's not going to do anything, and if she tries, we'll stop her."

David frowned doubtfully. "You don't know her like we do, Emma."

"She's not going to hurt anyone," Regina stated in a hard voice, "because I won't let her. I caused this, and I'll end it."

"This isn't your fault, Regina," Emma sighed.

"I never said it was," the brunette returned, and Emma rolled her eyes. "But I'll handle it all the same."

"I officially have a migraine," the Savior grumbled, pinching her brow, and took a sip of her coffee. "And I really need something stronger than this."

Henry sat down beside of her and gave her a teasing smile. "Alcohol is not a healthy way to deal with your stress, Ma."

"Hey, who's the parent here?" she said back, elbowing his side. "If I want to drown my problems in liquor, then I will."

Mary Margaret looked at her sharply. "He may not be your parent, but I am, and I might have something to say about that."

"I'm kidding!" Emma rolled her eyes as she stood. "God, you guys are so serious all the time; lighten up." She headed for the kitchen.

"Where are you going?" Her mother called after her, still not convinced her daughter wasn't going to drink herself into a comatose state.

"To get some Aspirin, if that's alright with you," the Sheriff snapped back in annoyance as she made her way to the pantry.

David placed a reassuring hand on his wife's shoulder before looking back to Regina. "So, if the Evil Queen is one of the versions of you running around, who's the other one?"

"Emma!" The squeak sounded out as Emma had her hand on the cabinet door, and she was nearly knocked off her feet when two hands were thrown around her. Eyes wide, she looked down at the younger Regina before glancing back at the others, who gawked at the two of them.

"Hey," she said uncertainly to the girl whose face was nuzzled into her neck. "What's up? You're supposed to be asleep."

"I was," she nodded. "Then, I had a nightmare. It was so scary. I woke and... and you weren't there." Though she hid her face, Emma could tell by the thickness in her voice that she had been crying. "I thought you'd left me."

"I told you I wouldn't do that," Emma sighed, hugging the girl back hesitantly. "You're alright now. It was just a dream."

"It felt so real," Regina said and looked up into the Sheriff's eyes. Emma saw the teartracks on her cheeks and how her eyes were red and puffy. "I was alone and that... the Evil Queen was there. My mother was there, too. They were trying to kill me." She sniffled. "I screamed for you, but you never came to help me."

"Well, obviously, it wasn't real since I'm here now," the blonde assured her with a small smile. "Now, maybe you could let go of me before my ribs begin to crack?" The young woman smiled before unwrapping her arms from around Emma's waist. "There. How do you feel?"

"Better," she said. "Better with you." Her head rested on Emma's shoulder tenderly.

"What the hell?" It was David who finally voiced the mutual confusion shared around the room. Emma shrugged her shoulders while the younger Regina acknowledged them all for the first time.

"Who are these people, Emma?" She asked, and her hand immediately found the Savior's fearfully.

"My family," Emma answered and walked the hesitant girl up to Henry, who gawked at a form of his mother he'd never even imagined could exist. The mayor kept one hand on her son's shoulder possessively. Emma couldn't help but smirk at the idea that she would be insecure about anyone coming close to Henry-even someone who was technically herself.

"This is Henry," the Sheriff introduced, and the younger Regina gasped. "Our son." Emma gave him an encouraging smile when he looked at her uncertainly.

"Uh, hi," he said awkwardly.

"Hello," Regina smiled at him in wonderment. "Henry." She blinked away tears. "He... He's so beautiful."

"Handsome," Emma corrected with a wink to the boy. He blushed bright scarlet, and she grinned. "And these are my parents." Emma looked to the pair and found them both gaping at the girlish version of Regina in shock. David, much like Henry, looked as if he could never have guessed the harsh and angry Madame Mayor had been so young and timid once before. Mary Margaret, however, felt as though she'd been flung back in time. Back to when she was a little girl. She remembered that day when this very same Regina had saved her from a rampaging horse. And she remembered the day when she'd betrayed her terribly.

"I-I'm Charming," David floundered out, then shook his head. "David, I mean. I'm David." The young Regina gave him a small smile and courtsied, which made the mayor groan and Emma snort with laughter. When she looked to Mary Margaret, though, her smile fell.

"Snow," she said, looking the pixie-haired woman up and down with a frown. "You're... all grown up."

"Regina," Mary Margaret choked out, a wave of emotion overcoming her. "I... I'm sorry."

"Mom," Emma scowled, shaking her head. While this Regina might have seemed harmless, she'd seen the anger that flashed in her eyes when she'd mentioned Daniel's death. The darkness that lay dormant inside of her. One Regina already wanted her dead; the last thing Mary Margaret needed to do was anger this one as well.

"You're sorry?" The young Regina snapped. "For what? For betraying me? For getting my True Love killed? For turning me into a monster?"

Mary Margaret glanced over at the mayor uncertainly, who stared at her younger self with the first flicker of recognition since finding her. She didn't know the young, scared girl she'd seen before, but this burning rage-this she was more than familiar with.

Mary Margaret had nothing to say in her defense, so she simply bowed her head in shame. "Yes."

"You should be," Regina growled. "You cost me everything I ever cared about all because you couldn't keep a simple promise. And look at you now. Here you are with your family and your happy ending. It isn't fair!"

"Regina." Emma placed hand on the younger woman's shoulder gently, and she looked back at her, the vengeful fire in her brown eyes dimming. "I know you're angry with her, and you want her to pay for what she did. Believe me, though, Snow White has more than suffered for what happened."

"How?" She demanded.

"The curse ripped her away from her entire family," the blonde replied, and Regina's face fell. "It separated her from me and my father for twenty-eight years. And the worst part of it all was that she didn't even know it-she just felt it. The emptiness. The feeling of missing something very, very important. No matter how hard she tried, though, she couldn't figure out what it was. She tried to fill the hole with other things. Anything at all to make the pain go away. Nothing worked, though. She spent all those years in a haze, searching for something that she didn't even know she missed."

The room was silent as Emma stood there, eyes glued to the floor. She'd had no control of what she'd said. The words had spilled out of her without her permission, and she was helpless to stop them. The only person in the room who seemed to not understand her true meaning was the young girl by her side, whose brow was knit.

"I-I'm sorry." Green eyes shot up and connected with brown intensely. The mayor stared at her, arms wrapped around her own stomach as if she might be sick, and her mouth hanging open slightly. She blinked away the moisture that burned her eyes. The guilt that collapsed on her chest at Emma's confession was unbearable. She'd known she caused pain-hell, that had been her purpose in casting the curse. She'd known her actions had hurt those around her, but she hadn't known the extent to which she had damaged Emma Swan. She hadn't considered the scars that the Savior bore, interally and externally, because of her curse. Now, she was standing face-to-face with them.

A weak shadow of a smile crossed Emma's face as she looked back at the mayor. "I know. It's alright." She rubbed uncomfortably at the few tears that managed to slip from her eyes. "I'm alright now."

"You're crying," the younger Regina said, staring up at the blonde beside her. "You're sad." Her eyes darted over to the mayor as she acknowledged her older self for the first time, and her face was twisted in protective wrath. "You did this to her! You hurt her! How could you do that?"

"Regina." Emma's voice was low. She placed a finger under the girl's chin, forcing her to look back at her. Her eyes held a warning. "Don't. Don't talk to her like that."

She frowned. "Why not? She made you cry."

"Because she is you," Emma said in a softer tone. "You made a mistake that hurt a lot of people, but you're not that person anymore. You're better-good-and you've fought like hell to get to where you are now. We've all been through a lot, and we've all had to learn hard lessons. We've all had to learn to let go of the past and move forward." She swallowed. "I don't blame you, and I'm not angry. Not anymore. I used to be. I was really, really _fucking_ mad at you for a long time over it, but now I've let all that go."

"How?" The younger Regina asked. "How could you forgive that?"

The blonde smiled. "Because, if it hadn't been for you and that curse, I never would've had Henry." She looked over at her son lovingly, and he smiled back at her. "All the pain in the world is worth him." She took a deep breath, stepping back from the girl. "Well, that got awkward fast. How about we focus on figuring out how to reverse this spell?"

"What about Mr. Gold?" Henry suggested with a shrug. "He's the only person who knows magic as well as my mom. He might know a way around this."

"That... is actually genius," Emma said, and looked over at the mayor. "Why didn't we think of that sooner?"

"I think we've all been rather stressed out, and it's clouded our reason," she answered, then grimaced. "Are we sure there's no one else who could help? I'd rather not visit that headcase if I can help it."

"We don't have a lot of choice here," the Sheriff sighed. "We should go."

"Go where?" Emma looked down at the younger Regina with a frown. "Where are we going?"

"Emma and I are going to see the Dark One," the mayor informed her past self with a cocked eyebrow that made her irritation with the young girl well known. Not necessarily because she was so clingy, but because of _who_ she was clinging to. "You're going to stay here."

"What?" She exclaimed in a panic. "No! I-I can't! Emma, you promised!"

"We can't stay attached at the hip all the time," the Savior reasoned with the frenzied girl. "Why don't you spend some time with Henry?" She looked pleadingly to her son, who nodded in acceptance of his role as babysitter. "Maybe you two could go to the stables and ride?"

"That'd be fun," Henry smiled, and the young Regina looked at him. "Besides, if you want Emma, I'm pretty much the next best thing."

"We're basically the same person," the blonde agreed with a nod, while the mayor rolled her eyes.

"I-I suppose I could do that," the girl finally nodded, then looked back up at Emma. "You won't be long?"

"You'll barely even miss me," she assured her. "You're going to be alright?"

The young brunette hesitated a moment, then nodded. "Yes. I'll be okay."

"Good." Emma took a step away from her, and then hugged her son. "Thanks, Henry. I appreciate this."

"No problem," he shrugged back at her with a smile. "I'm actually looking forward to getting to know her." He looked back over at the unfamiliar version of his adoptive mother. "It's so weird seeing her like this. It's like, she's Mom, but then... she's not."

"Trippy as hell, right?" She smiled at him, and he nodded in agreement. "Take good care of her. I'll see you soon, kid."

He gave Regina a farewell hug as well, and the two women left the apartment together.

"Man, feels good to be able to breathe again," Emma sighed, stretching her arms out. "No offense, Regina, but younger you is a total clinger."

"She's certainly taken a liking to you," Regina sighed. "She appears to be me just after Daniel died." She frowned. "I was extremely emotional at that time. My True Love had just been murdered before my eyes by my own mother, and I was being forced to marry a man three times my age as well as take on a stepdaughter who I hated." Her eyes narrowed at Emma. "What did you say to her when you first met anyway? How did you convince her to trust you?"

The Savior shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. I just told her I wasn't going to hurt her and explained everything as well as I could. I was honest with her, and she seemed to value that. Then, she just kind of... latched on."

"She's lonely," the mayor frowned at the sidewalk. "You offered to be a friend to her, and she jumped."

"Well, she might be a little annoying, but I like her. At least she's nice to me."

Regina glared at her. "And I'm not?"

"Not typically, no."

"I'm plenty nice to you, Miss Swan."

"You called me an idiot five times yesterday alone."

"That's because you are one."

"Yeah, I know," Emma said with a lopsided grin, "but I know you like me anyway."

Regina side-eyed her, lips pressed in a firm line to keep from smiling. "I most certainly do not."

"Really?" The blonde turned to face her, hands on her hips. "Because you certainly seemed to like me a few days ago when I spent the entire night between your legs." The mayor frowned. "In fact, the way you were screaming my name sounded like you liked me a whole lot."

"You're crass and juvenile," Regina frowned, turning and continuing walking. "And I will not encourage your antics."

Emma laughed out loud and followed behind her, eyes trained on the curves of her backside. "Your presence alone encourages my antics, Madame Mayor."


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Wow, you guys. Thank you so much for your reviews, messages, follows, and favorites. As I said before, this is my very first attempt at a fanfiction story of any kind, and as a person who very rarely lets her work be seen by ANYONE, I was pretty nervous. You all have been fantastic, though, and I really appreciate it. This story is shaping up into something that I didn't even think it would be when I first started, and I'm excited you seem to be enjoying it. We're going to see relationships really begin to shape out in the coming chapters, and I'm really looking forward to it. Thank you again, and enjoy!

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The tingling of the bell over the pawn shop's door set Regina's teeth on edge, and she clenched her fists to keep herself from ripping the damn thing down. Her head was practically throbbing from the stress of the day, as well as the physical toll the spell she'd unintentionally cast upon herself had taken on her. It was neither easy nor pleasant to split one's self into three fragments, and she'd felt sick ever since it had happened.

God, how could she have allowed this to happen? Out of all the foolish things she'd done in her life, this one took the cake. She knew how dangerous magic could be firsthand, and yet she had been so reckless as to slip up so monumentally. _You're losing your touch, Madame Mayor._

"You alright?" Emma's soft voice from beside of her made Regina blink, and she looked over to the blonde as they made their way to the front desk of the cluttered shop.

Something that she hoped resembled a smile crossed her lips. "Yes, dear. I'm fine. Just thinking, that's all."

Emma offered back a supportive, determined smile. "We're going to figure this out, Regina."

"I know we will," she said back with a nod. "I just want to get this over with already."

"Well, hopefully, Gold will be able to help out," Emma sighed, placing her palms on the desk and leaning over it to peer around in the backroom for the owner. "Hey, Gold! You in here?"

"Must you always yell, dearie?"

Both women jumped when the Dark One appeared around the corner, leaning on his cane and limping towards them behind the counter.

"For a guy with a cane, you move awfully quietly," the Sheriff noted, and Gold gave her an unappreciative sneer.

"To what do I owe this royal visit?" He asked, eyes flickering between the two women.

"We need your help," Regina said, and he raised his eyebrows at her.

"And why, pray tell, would I help you?" He questioned. "Because of you, Belle spent twenty-eight years locked away in solitude."

"That was ages ago," the mayor said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "And I apologized for it already."

"An apology doesn't give her those years back," he growled.

"If you don't want to help her," Emma inserted, and they both looked at her, "then do it for me."

He pinched his brow incredulously at her. "Not to be rude, Miss Swan, but I'm not terribly fond of you, either."

"After everything you've done," the Savior pointed her finger at him, "you owe me this much."

He snorted. "I owe you nothing, dearie."

"I reunited you with your son," Emma reminded him, and he frowned at the mention of Baelfire. Rumpelstiltskin had become quite adept at concealing his emotions over the years as the Dark One, but it was more than evident that the loss of his son still haunted him daily. "Besides, in the grand scheme of things, you owe me and Regina and everyone else here. This whole curse was your doing from the start. You manipulated Regina into casting it, and you created me to break it. So, yes, Gold, you do owe me-big time-and I'm here to collect."

The older man eyed her harshly for a moment. "What is it you need from me, Miss Swan?"

"Regina had a little... accident," Emma chose her words carefully, and Gold rolled his eyes at the mayor. "She split herself, and now there are two more of her on the loose. One of which is the Evil Queen."

"Well done, dearie," he spat sarcastically, and Regina tightened her eyes at him, mouth twitching in anger. What she wouldn't give for a chance to smash his other foot. "I taught you better than to make such amateur mistakes."

"Just tell us how to fix it," she growled at him.

"Is there, like, a reverse spell or something for it?" Emma asked. "Maybe a reset button?"

"Magic is not a game, Miss Swan," Gold said to her in a voice that dripped with condescension. "There are no reset buttons or erasers. Regina did far more than split her physical body-she separated her very soul. The two women are apart of her being, and they are vital to her existence."

Regina frowned at him. "What are you saying, Gold? In plain English, please."

He scowled at her. "Your soul separated because you are conflicted with your own self. Who you have become cannot reconcile with who you once were, and that's what caused the fracture. To join the pieces again, you must acknowledge that the Evil Queen and the Regina who was before are still as much apart of you as the woman you are now."

"I am not what I used to be," Regina shook her head with a scowl. "I've changed." She'd fought harder than she ever had in her life to change, and she'd be damned if she let Gold belittle that, even if it was the only way to get rid of her stupid clones.

Gold gave her an acidic smile. "Nobody changes that much, dearie."

"So, that's it?" Emma asked, and they both looked at her with matching frowns. "Regina faces her demons, and the problem's solved? That's all we have to do?"

The pawnbroker smirked at her, brushing his long hair back from his face. "You say that as if it is simply done. You've dealt with your own internal chaos before, Miss Swan. Was there anything harder than facing your past sins and accepting them?" She swallowed hard, throat tightening. "I thought as much. Now, I've told you all that I can. Please, do me a favor, and get out of my shop."

"Gladly." Regina's heels squeaked on the recently-polished floors as she headed for the door.

Emma lingered a moment, looking at the Dark One with narrowed eyes. "You'd better be telling the truth, Gold."

He smiled at her with a shrug. "What could I possibly gain from lying to you? Besides, don't you possess an affinity for discerning the truth from the false? Your, ah, superpower, I believe you call it."

"Just because you're telling some truth, it doesn't mean that you're telling all of it," she reasoned. "All magic comes at a price, right?"

His smiled remained just as oily as before. "Indeed it does, dearie. And Regina's price is the pain and chaos of her physical separation."

Emma sucked at her teeth. "Yeah, I suppose it is. Let me warn you, though, Gold: if there is another price, a worse one, that you're keeping from us, if she is put in any danger because of this, I will come back here and make you regret it."

He raised his eyebrows. "Will you, now? Isn't the Savior meant to be a beacon of hope and light? Death threats are a bit dark for your taste, dearie."

She grinned darkly. "I never said I'd kill you. No, that'd be much too simple. If Regina is hurt in all of this because of something you didn't tell me, I won't kill you. I'll just make you wish to God that I had." The look on his somber face told her that he understood her loud and clear, and she backed away from the counter with a thin smile. "Thank you for your time, Mr. Gold."

"Good day, Miss Swan."

She exited the shop and found Regina waiting for her on the street.

"What was that about?" She questioned with an arched brow.

"Just some friendly chit-chat," Emma shrugged nonchalantly. "So, we got our answer. Let's go deal with your issues, Madame Mayor. I was thinking maybe an intervention, you know? Get the whole town in on it. Maybe Archie will be free to mediate."

"This is a joke to you," Regina frowned, crossing her arms.

"Joke?" The blonde repeated with feigned ignorance. "I don't know what you mean, Regina. I am one hundred percent serious."

"This isn't funny, Miss Swan!" Regina snapped back, and Emma frowned at her sharp tone. "I am under an immense amount of pressure and stress, and you think it's just all a chance to have a laugh at my expense!"

The Sheriff frowned. "Regina, I... You know that isn't the case. It's just that everything is so dark and heavy right now, I thought I could cheer you up." She looked at the mayor with sincere eyes. "I would never make your pain into a joke."

"I know," Regina sighed, pinching her brow. "I-I'm sorry I reacted so harshly. It isn't fair for me to take out my frustrations on you."

Emma eyed her for a moment, observing how the vein in her forehead seemed to pulse. "Is... Is it too terrible?"

The brunette looked at her with a sigh. "It feels like a nasty hangover that won't go away. My head is aching, and my stomach feels like it's twisted into knots. I'm irritable and cramping and pissed off."

"Sounds like a severe case of PMS," Emma noted with a cringe.

"I suppose that might be an adequate analogy. Except this won't go away."

"I'm sorry."

Regina knit her brow at the words. "Why are you sorry? I did this to myself."

"I know," Emma shrugged, "but I'm still sorry you feel badly." Her eyes peeked up at the woman in front of her under hooded lashes. "Is there anything I can do to help? Maybe I could pick you up some medicine?"

"I highly doubt that Midol would relieve this," Regina said. "I think, if I had a good enough distraction, perhaps it would ease a bit."

Emma's face brightened into a wide grin. "Well, I can manage that."

"Beg pardon?"

"Don't even worry about it," the blonde assured her, stepping closer. Regina tried to keep her expression held in a scorn, but with the younger woman so close to her and looking at her with eyes that pratically sparkled, she had trouble focusing. "I've got it under control. I'll arrange for Henry to spend the night with my parents' tonight. You go home, and try to get some rest. I'll drop by your place at seven."

"Miss Swan, what are you planning?"

Emma turned and walked away from Regina with her smile still in place. "You'll find out later tonight!"


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: So, I'm back. Sorry about the hiatus, but I spent most if not all of Memorial weekend drunk. I'm going to try to and keep the updates fairly regular, every other day if not every day. Thank you guys for all your feedback and responses. Your reviews and follows are a huge source of motivation and inspiration. You asked for SMUT, so here it is. First time ever writing it, so I hope I didn't fuck it up too badly. Either way, let me know. Without further ado, I give you: Chapter 5.

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By the time seven o'clock rolled around, Regina was a nervous wreck. She was already stressed out by the situation she'd caused, but the anxiety of wondering what Emma was planning added to that tenfold. If there was one thing the mayor did not like, it was surprises.

She hadn't felt like cooking that evening, so her dinner came from a cardboard box in her freezer. Pre-cooked meatloaf and mashed potatoes. It made her stomach churn, and her nausea intensify. After she'd eaten not quite half of it, she discarded it on the kitchen counter and retired to the den with a glass of wine in hand, hoping and praying the alcohol would be enough to ease her worries. Henry's words to Emma earlier echoed through her head. _Alcohol is not a healthy way to deal with stress._ Well, it was either this or blow steam off by setting something on fire. Wine was the lesser of two evils.

"Besides," she hummed to herself as she perched on the edge of her sofa. "A glass of wine a day is healthy." Nevermind that it was her third of the evening.

There was a brief knock at the front door, and it was shoved open before Regina responded. The sound of clunky footsteps in her foyer informed her that it was Emma. Glancing down at her wristwatch, she pursed her lips in disapproval. Seven-fifteen. The woman was perpetually late.

"Regina?" Emma called as she made her way inside. "Where are you?"

"Den," Regina said back, rubbing her vibrating skull. "And, please, keep your voice down before I explode."

After a suspicious amount of rustling around on the other side of the door, Emma appeared in the den, a goofy smile on her lips and hands clasped behind her back. Regina eyed her dubiously.

"What are you doing?" She asked, standing from the sofa.

"Have you eaten dinner?" The Sheriff questioned, and Regina hesitated before giving her a half-nod. Emma's smile diminished slightly, but she restored it in record time. "Well, you're going to eat again."

"What?" Regina groaned, hands on her hips. "I'm not hungry, Emma." The gurgle that erupted from her stomach contradicted her, and she blushed deep red while Emma grinned.

"You don't have to eat it all," the blonde assured her. "Just give it a shot, and, if you don't want it, I won't force you to finish."

The brunette relented without much of a fight, which told Emma that she really must've felt badly. She escorted Regina to the dining room, hoping with everything inside of her that she'd done enough to help the mayor's spirits rise.

When Regina was pushed into the dining room, her jaw dropped in awe. The first thing that hit her was the smell. The combination of Parmesan and marinara sauce had her mouth-watering, and the sight of the dish plated so carefully on the table had her stomach growling impatiently.

"Chicken Parmigiana," Emma said, leading the mayor up to the table. Regina stared down at the cheese-and-sauce-smothered chicken over a bed of pasta noodles. In the center of the table was a basket of delicious-smelling garlic bread. Two long-necked glasses had been precariously situated beside the plates, and a bottle of wine that had cost the Sheriff no small amount waited to be opened. "I know it's one of your favorites. I got the recipe from my mother-I hope it came out alright."

Regina turned her wide eyes on the blonde beside her. "You... You cooked for me?"

"I assumed you wouldn't have the energy to make yourself a decent meal," Emma answered, glancing over into the kitchen where the plastic case of a microwavable meal still sat.

"Emma," Regina said in a voice that was hardly audible, and her smile crinkled her eyes the way that made the young Sheriff's heart skip. "Thank you."

Emma managed to calm her erratic pulse enough to pull a chair out for the brunette. "Don't thank me yet. We have to see if it's edible first."

Regina let out a throaty chuckle while Emma hurried to sit down across from her. "It certainly smells wonderful." The Savior popped the cork off the top of the wine bottle and filled both hers and the mayor's glasses.

"Okay," Emma said, glancing around the dinner to make sure she hadn't forgotten anything. "Alright, that's everything. Dig in."

"I do not dig into anything," Regina couldn't help but quip, expertly carving her fork and knife into the chicken. Emma didn't respond, only watched the mayor carefully and waited in apprehensive silence. Her eyes followed the brunette's fork when it speared a piece of the chicken, wrapped it in a spiral of pasta noodles, and brought it slowly to her mouth. Emma held her breath as Regina chewed thoughtfully. Finally, she couldn't stand the suspense any longer.

"Well?" She blurted out, and Regina's eyes flashed to her. "Is it... Is it okay?"

"Okay?" The mayor repeated, and Emma nodded. "Is it okay? Dear, it's more than okay. It's fantastic."

The blonde released a sigh of relief that Regina thought might have been exaggerated until she met a pair of cool green eyes. The look of joy in them took her off guard. Emma truly had been terrified that she wouldn't like the meal. That it wouldn't be good enough for her.

"Good," the Sheriff said, finally allowing herself to partake in the meal she'd so painstakingly prepared. "I'm glad you like it." She hesitated. "So, um, how's the PMS coming along?"

"It's not PMS, Miss Swan." Regina's sharp tone only made Emma smirk. "And it's better now." The smirk transformed into a proud smile. She'd done it. She'd helped rather than hurt Regina. Finally. "Thank you, Miss Swan. I really do appreciate all you've done for me tonight."

"You're welcome," Emma looked up at her. "Regina, don't you think it's about time you dropped the whole 'Miss Swan' thing?" The mayor frowned. "I mean, how long have we known each other now? A while, and we've come a long way. It made sense when you didn't like me, but now it just feels a little strange."

Regina cocked an eyebrow at her. "What makes you think I like you now?"

Emma rolled her eyes exasperatedly. "Well, we're sitting here, having a mostly civil dinner together. We're raising our son together and successfully co-parenting him. And you call me over to fuck you at least twice a week." She smirked at the outraged expression the mayor took on. "So, yeah, I think that, despite your greatest efforts, you've begun to like me."

"What would you rather I call you then?" She asked stiffly, taking a sip of her wine.

"Well, I have a pretty insane idea," the blonde answered, holding her hands out as if she were about the pitch her an investment opportunity. "I was thinking that maybe, and don't freak out on me here, you could call me by my... name."

Regina rolled her eyes. "You're impossible, Miss S-"

"Ah-ah," Emma wagged her index finger at her. "Not Miss Swan. My first name."

The mayor stared at her with deep brown eyes that radiated an intense heat that Emma thought might burn straight through her. "Alright then. Em-ma."

The blonde's mouth dried out at those two syllables, eyes wide, and her fork clattered from her hand to the plate. Never had she ever thought the sound of her own name could be so arousing, but then this _was_ Regina. She had a way of making anything sexual. The mayor sat back smugly, satisfied with the reaction her words had garnered.

"Not like that," Emma finally managed to choke out. "Not yet, anyway."

"Yet?" Regina questioned.

"I've still got more plans," Emma replied, "and I don't want to get sidetracked."

"What?" The brunette demanded, frowning. "You didn't come here for... for that?"

Emma nearly laughed at the angry disappointment shaking Regina's voice. "I definitely had that in mind, but just not yet. Dinner's only part of the surprise."

Regina crossed her arms. "Can't we just fast-forward to that part?" The blonde across from her laughed, and it was such a delicious sound that Regina couldn't help but smile.

After dinner, Emma served dessert, forcing the mayor to stay in her seat despite her protests to assist her in the kitchen. The Sheriff returned in a moment with two glass dishes of dark chocolate mousse topped artisanally with whipped cream and raspberries.

"I wasn't sure about dessert," Emma admitted, "so I asked Henry what your favorite was."

Regina licked her lips as she placed the dish in front of her. "He knows the way to my heart."

Emma smiled, taking her seat again and dipping her spoon into the dessert.

"Did you make this?" Regina questioned with wide eyes after she'd swallowed her first bite.

"No," the blonde shook her head with a laugh. "I wish. I thought about it, but the recipe was a little advanced for me, and I didn't have a lot of time to spend perfecting it. I special ordered it from the sweets shop in town and picked it up on the way here."

"It's wonderful, Emma," the mayor smiled at her. "This is all so wonderful. I... I don't know what to say. Except thank you. I needed this."

Emma grinned at her, thrilled that she'd done something to ease Regina's pain rather than add to it. "The night isn't over yet. After dessert, I have another surprise in store."

Once they'd finished their dinner, they moved to the living room where Emma instructed Regina to sit while she busied herself with the television.

"What are you doing?" Regina asked, brow pinched in concern. She didn't like television-the set was only there for Henry's sake. Emma, however, loved it. She cringed at the idea that the blonde would force her to sit through another episode of her favorite show, Saturday Night Live. While Emma had rolled with laughter through the entire hour, Regina simply hadn't understood the appeal.

"Turning on the DVD player," Emma said and held up a disc case that she'd pulled from her bag. "I rented a movie."

The brunette eyed the case harshly. "'Maleficent?' Dear, I know the woman-it's really not necessary for me to watch a movie about her."

"I know you know her," the Sheriff sighed, placing the disc in the player. "I think you're really going to like this, though."

"Why?" Regina scowled. "It's the same fairytale story I've heard a thousand times before."

Emma plopped down beside of her on the sofa with a grin. "Don't be so sure, Madame Mayor. This story's a little different from the tale as old as time."

The mayor's eyebrow quirked upward inquisitively. "How so?"

Emma leaned closer to her, breath tickling the shell of her ear. "The bad guy wins."

Regina tried to remain indifferent and uninterested in the film, but it was an impossible battle to fight. She found herself drawn into the story within the first few minutes, attention glued to the television screen. Emma, however, watched the woman beside of her rather than the movie-which she'd already seen with Henry in the theater. She loved how Regina's eyes scanned the TV, how her lips were parted ever-so-slightly in intrigue. She smiled at the mayor's reactions, how she gasped and laughed in all the right places. While Regina was captivated with the movie before her, Emma was enchanted by Regina.

When the movie ended, the blonde waited expectantly for the other woman's response. She'd tried to ask her a few times throughout the film if she liked it or not, but Regina had shushed her viciously each time.

"Well?" Emma said. "What did you think?"

Regina looked over at her. "I think you spent more time watching me than the movie." The Savior grinned widely, unashamed at being caught. "You should've paid more attention to it-it was a wonderful movie."

She shrugged casually. "What I was looking at was better." The mayor couldn't stop a rush of heat in her cheeks. "Besides, I've already seen it."

"You rented a movie you'd already seen?" Regina repeated. "Why?"

"Because I knew you'd like it," Emma answered. "Plus, it's a good movie." She grinned devilishly at the brunette beside of her. "I've always been more of a fan of the villains than the heroes, you know."

"This was all so thoughtful," Regina mused. "Nobody's ever done anything like this for me before. Thank you, Emma."

"You're welcome," the blonde said, brushing a stray strand of dark hair from the mayor's face. "I like doing things like this for you."

Regina leaned closer, dark eyes glittering as the space between them gradually closed. "There are things that I like to do for you, too, you know?" Emma smiled crookedly, her heart jumping as the mayor's hands stroked up and down her thighs. The two came together in a warm kiss. Regina's hands wandered upward to the front of Emma's jeans, and her fingers began to undo their button.

The blonde took hold of her wrists, pulling her hands back with a smile. "Hang on there." Regina frowned. "Tonight's about making you feel better, not me." Leaning forward, Emma gently pushed Regina back until she was lying flat on her back on the sofa.

"That does make me feel better," the brunette protested, hands moving back to her lover's waistline.

Emma stopped her with a passionate kiss, her body resting between the mayor's spread legs. The blonde paid special attention to the scar that she loved so much. It wasn't a flaw or imperfection to her. It was more like a signature. Something that was distinctly and beautifully Regina. When she pulled back, Emma looking down at Regina with her teeth sank into her smiling lips. "You first, Madame Mayor."

Regina gasped as Emma peppered her neck with kisses. Lithe fingers made quick work of the mayor's shirt buttons. Emma's hands danced up and down Regina's bare torso before finally settling on her breasts. Even through her bra, she could feel the mayor's taut nipples, and the woman beneath her breathed out a small moan at the pressure Emma's hands applied to them.

Emma slid her tongue down the valley between Regina's breasts, leaving a wet, scalding trail on the flushed skin. Regina held the blonde closer to her, desperate for more contact. She couldn't get enough of the woman on top of her. Of her body. Her hands. Her tongue. Her everything.

The Sheriff unhooked Regina's bra, casting it into the same pile on the floor as her shirt, and admired the beautiful scene below her a moment. The mayor was practically glowing with her arousal, her body shimmering with a thin sheen of sweet sweat, and her eyes had darkened in a way that made Emma's stomach jerk.

"What are you looking at?" Regina asked her in a breathy voice.

Emma smiled and leaned back down. Kissing her, she left her lips pressed to Regina's when she whispered, "Perfection."

Moving down when the mayor blushed, Emma massaged one of her bare breasts with her hand, while her tongue licked circles around the other. Regina gasped, eyes rolling back and mouth opening in pleasure. She combed her fingers through long, golden blonde hair, loving the feeling of each silky curl against her skin.

Emma's hands made their way down to the side of the mayor's skirt and unzipped it. She shimmied the skirt down lower, then stopped when she'd pulled it past the mayor's hips. Her eyes flickered up to Regina's face, and she lifted an eyebrow.

"No panties, hm?" She said.

Regina smiled in response. "I had an idea of what might happen tonight."

Emma grinned widely and placed a firm kiss to the toned, olive abdomen below her.

"You're wearing entirely too much," Regina said, locking her fingers in the belt loops of the Sheriff's skin-tight jeans.

"On that we can agree," Emma said back, her thigh rubbing lightly between Regina's legs and eliciting quiet moans. In a plume of purple smoke, the two bodies were pressed bare against each other, skin touching skin, sweat mingling. The magical scent that hung in the air only served to further their arousal.

"Much better," the mayor smiled up at the nude Sheriff. She reached out to touch her, but Emma slid down away from her hands. Regina frowned. "Where are you going?"

Emma rolled her eyes as she settled down between the brunette's legs. She was so close that her breath tickled Regina's center, making the other woman shiver. "I'd think you could use your incredible powers of deduction to guess that, Madame Mayor."

Regina gasped, her fingers knotting themselves in the blonde mane. "Emma..."

The Sheriff placed her lips lightly against slick folds. "Regina." Her tongue danced across the mayor's skin, darting out at random intervals to make contact.

Regina let out a strained shriek. "Stop teasing!"

Looking up into dark, seductive eyes with a smile, Emma slid her hands up smooth thighs. "Yes, Your Majesty."

She latched her mouth onto Regina's clit and sucked while two fingers slipped inside the mayor, who writhed and moaned below her. Pumping inside a woman she was sure had to be the most beautiful in all the lands, Emma could feel her own arousal dripping, but she ignored it. This wasn't about her. This was about Regina.

Regina, who was coming undone below her. The stress had piled up on her since her mistake, and she was wound tight like a clock. All the pressure inside of her mounted under Emma's expert movements, and she could feel herself rising higher and higher. It was when the blonde inserted a third finger and grazed her teeth against her electrifed clit that Regina knew it was all she could take. With a scream that left goosebumps on the younger woman's skin, Regina came crashing down from the stars. Emma held her body secure and returned her tongue to its soft, intermittent movements as the woman rode out wave after wave of pleasure. The blonde waited, holding Regina through her aftershocks, before emerging from between her legs when the shaking stopped. Regin stared at her, her breathing labored, and her eyes struggling to focus from the intensity of her orgasm. With a proud smile on her lips, Emma lifted the hand that had previously been buried inside of the mayor to her face, and licked each glistening finger clean.

Regina groaned, circling her arms around the Sheriff's waist and pulling her back down into a kiss. "I swear, you will be my undoing, Miss Swan."

Emma grinned into her lips. "Making you come undone is my favorite thing, Madame Mayor."


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Just wanted to give a quick s/o to **beautifullife0** who suggested the bathroom scene in this chapter a while back. Mostly this chapter is just comedic, but I think it helps to solidify these characters as well as the direction of the story. Hope you all like it, and remember to drop me some feedback.

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"Now, dear, it's your turn." Regina sat up, pressing herself against Emma and pushing her backwards. The Sheriff smiled widely, offering no resistance and allowing herself to be reclined on the sofa. Plump, red lips pressed against thin, pink ones, and Regina's tongue swiped inside Emma's parted mouth, drawing a gasp from the blonde. Emma wrapped her long, slender arms around Regina's small waist, pinning her against her as they kissed. Trailing down from her mouth, Regina's lips found their way to Emma's jawline, then further down to her neck. She kissed lightly, careful not to leave any marks that would be visible to outside eyes. That last thing either of them wanted was for anyone to get curious.

The sweet, soft scent of vanilla met Regina's nostrils as she sucked along Emma's clavicle, and she sighed into her skin at it. Of one thing, Regina was certain: no one smelled better than Emma. Her tongue dashed across the blonde's collar bone, and she smiled. No one tasted better, either.

The sound of a muffled phone ringing made them both jump, and eyes shot to the blonde's pants lying in the floor where Regina had magicked them off. The vibration of her cell phone could be seen inside the jean's pocket. Emma looked back to Regina, chewing on her lip.

"I should probably..." She began.

"Don't even think about it," the brunette growled, resuming her kisses along her lover's chest and shoulders.

"It could be important," Emma breathed, eyes closed and mouth open as Regina's masterful tongue navigated its way across her skin. How was it possible that tongue knew every single place that drove her crazy? "Could be Sheriff stuff."

"It can wait," the mayor insisted, her hands slithering towards the inside of pale, toned thighs.

When the phone stopped ringing, Emma began to agree with Regina. Certainly it couldn't be too important. That was her personal ringer-if anyone had needed her for an emergency, they would've called the emergency hotline, which had a different, more urgent-sounding ringtone.

A sound that resembled a foghorn blaring out into the night made the two women nearly fall off the sofa they were so carefully perched on.

"Oh, my God!" Regina gasped, eyes wide. "What the hell is that?"

"Emergency hotline," Emma frowned. "That one I really should get."

"They'll leave a message," the brunette insisted.

"Regina, I'm the Sheriff," Emma shook her head. "That's the emergency number. I _have_ to answer it-it's my job."

"Isn't Ruby at the station tonight?" Regina asked, hands on her hips.

The blonde's frown deepened. "Yes, but-"

"But nothing," the mayor said, placing a finger over Emma's lips to silence her. "She's there, you're here. She will handle whatever emergency it is-probably just Miss Howard's cat stuck in a tree again-and I will handle you tonight." She smirked, leaning back down and replacing her finger with her lips. "Got it?"

Emma couldn't even think straight with the intoxicating woman pressed so firmly against her, much less argue. So, she nodded. "Got it."

Another kiss on the mouth, and Regina continued her work down at her chest. One hand kneaded an attentive, firm breast while another ghosted around the apex of the blonde's thighs, eliciting sharp, frustrated sighs.

"Didn't we say no teasing?" Emma grunted.

Regina smiled. "This is not teasing, dear. This is just a preview of what I plan to do to you." Emma shuddered as the fingers slid up and down her folds, collecting her wetness.

The loud ringing began again, and Emma groaned.

She extended an arm out for her jeans. "I have to answer it, Regin-AH!" She yelped when the woman above her sank her sharp teeth into her clavicle hard. "Goddamn it, Regina, don't do that shit!" The brunette sat up, straddling Emma's waist, with a triumphant smile.

"I'm sorry?" She said. "Do what?"

"You know what," Emma grumbled as she grabbed her jeans and extracted her phone. "We've talked about this before, you fucking sadist."

"Really, dear, I have no idea to what you are referring," Regina said innocently, though her smugness only grew when she the red teeth marks forming on her lover's collarbone. It wouldn't be visible under clothes, so long as the Sheriff didn't wear a shirt with too deep of a neckline, and it would most likely fade away in a matter of days. Still, Regina was glad to have made her point.

Emma retrieved her cell phone and answered the call, still glaring up at Regina. "Hello?"

"Emma!" Her mother said breathily on the other line. "Thank God you answered! I called you twice before, but it went to voicemail."

"Mom, this is an emergency-only number," the blonde sighed, and Regina rolled her eyes. Of course it was the idiot mother. Snow White was the biggest cockblocker imaginable.

"Well, this is an emergency!" Mary Margaret insisted.

Emma read the urgency in her tone and propped up on her elbow. "What are you talking about? What kind of emergency? Is it Henry?" Regina's eyes widened, and she clenched her hands into fists. Looking down at the blonde, she mouthed "What's going on?" The Sheriff shook her head blankly in response.

"No, Henry's fine," her mother answered, and Emma sighed in relief. Regina read the expression and shared it. Henry was okay. "It's not Henry... It's Regina. Uh, younger Regina."

"What now?" Emma groaned, letting head fall back on the sofa and closing her eyes in annoyance. If she was going to have to leave this Regina-in this state-to attend to another one, it was going to have to be for one hell of a good reason.

"She's kind of freaking out," Mary Margaret answered. "She's locked herself in the bathroom, and she won't listen to any of us. She just keeps yelling that she wants you. I'm afraid she's going to hurt herself, Emma. Or, possibly, destroy everything in my bathroom. Please, come and talk to her. She won't listen to anyone but you."

Emma lay there a moment, deciding if she could stay with this Regina and leave her family to deal with the younger one in good conscience, before sighing heavily. "Alright. Fine. Yeah, I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Thank you, sweetie. Try to hurry, please."

"Uh-huh." She hung up the phone, then peeked a glance up at the woman sitting above her. Sharp, angry brown eyes burned down on her, leaving her skin practically smoking, and she winced.

"Regina, I-"

"You're leaving," the brunette growled. "You're really going to leave right now?"

"I have to," Emma sighed. "It sucks and, believe me, I don't want to go, but I don't have a lot of choice in it."

"What exactly is the big emergency your mother needs you for?" Regina crossed her arms. Emma would never figure out how she still managed to look so intimidating bare-ass naked.

"It's you," she sighed, and the mayor frowned. "Younger you. She's freaking out for some reason. Locked herself in the bathroom and won't let anyone talk to her. Apparently, she just wants me."

"That needy little child," Regina clenched her teeth. Maybe Snow White wasn't the biggest cockblocker anymore.

"Anyway, I've got to go calm her down," Emma said. "So, as much as I really don't want to, I'm going to have to ask you to let me get up and get dressed."

Regina arched an eyebrow at her. "And if I don't?"

"Then you're forcing our son to have to deal with a panicked, scared version of his mother all night long," Emma said. "Are you okay with that?"

Regina hesitated. "Well, I did spend many nights up with him as a baby..."

"Regina," Emma scowled, and the brunette sighed heavily.

"Fine," she said, sliding off the woman and standing. Emma stood to her feet and quickly pulled her underwear and jeans on. "But this isn't over. You owe me."

"I know," Emma nodded, hobbling on one foot as she struggled to get her boots on. "Hopefully, I can get her to calm down and asleep in no time, and I'll just come right back. I'll think of some excuse for my parents. Late paperwork or something."

"Oh, this will be dealt with quickly," Regina said and waved a hand over herself. In a cloud of purple smoke, she was dressed. "I will make sure of that."

Emma stopped fighting with her boots to gape at her. "You're coming?"

"Indeed," the mayor nodded, flipping her hair back. "I want to make sure you handle this as time efficiently as possible."

"I know how to do my job, Regina," Emma scoffed, hands on her hips. "I'm pretty damn good at it according to everyone else."

"Of course you are, dear." Regina waved her hand, and Emma was fully dressed. "Now, let's go and deal with this."

Regina magicked the two of them right outside of Mary Margaret's door, leaving Emma staggering slightly upon arrival.

"Still not entirely used to that," she muttered, gathering her footing. "I told you to give me a three-count before you use magic on me."

"Well, if you would practice your magic like I told you, you'd be able to do it yourself," Regina scolded her.

"I kind of need a teacher for that," Emma snapped back. "And lately, every time you try to teach me, we just end up naked."

Regina smirked slightly. "I'm not sure what you mean, dear."

"Yeah, right," the blonde rolled her eyes and opened the door.

"Moms!" Henry jogged up to them, eyes wide with a look of pure panic on his face. "You're here."

"What's up, kid?" Emma asked him. "What happened that freaked her out so much?"

"Grams took her to the bathroom and showed her how to use the toilet," he relayed to them. "Like, how to flush and stuff. You know, in case she needed to go in the middle of the night. Then, she just freaked out. Said it was a monster or something, and Snow White was trying to kill her. So, she locked Grams out, and now she just won't come out."

Emma looked over at a frowning Regina and grinned widely. "Wow, Regina. Younger you really is something else, isn't she?"

"She is not me," the mayor crossed her arms with a scorn. "Just go handle this already."

"Alright, alright." Emma made her way up the stairs to the bathroom. Her parents stood camped outside the closed door, and they both turned upon hearing her arrival.

"Emma, thank God," David sighed. "She's freaking out in there. The toilet spooked her."

"Henry told me," she said. "I'll take care of it." They moved back, allowing her all the room needed, and Emma pressed herself against the door. She heard the sniffling cries through the wood and frowned. "Regina?"

"Emma?" The voice was full of both hope and fear.

"Yeah, it's me," the blonde answered. "Can you open the door for me?"

There was an unexpected hesitation. "You left me here alone. You told me you wouldn't be long."

Emma frowned, forehead resting against the door. "I know. I'm sorry about that. I got held up at work. We're pulling doubles here to try and figure this mess out. I'm just trying to get you back home."

"You said you wouldn't leave me." The pain and betayal in her voice hit the Sheriff like a ton of bricks.

"I know," she said in a low voice. "I know I said that, and I'm not going to leave you. I'm here now, aren't I?" There was silence. "Please, Regina. Open the door. Let me in."

At first, there was no answer. Then, the sound of soft footsteps on the tile floor sounded followed by the click of the lock. The door wasn't opened, so Emma pushed it open on her own. Inside, she found Young Regina curled up inside the bath tub, her knees hugged to her chest, teary eyes trained on the toilet in terror. It would've been funny to Emma had it not been so pitiful.

Emma moved to the tub and crouched down to eye-level with Regina. "What's up?"

"The monster," she whispered, and Emma fought a smile. "It makes roars awfully and creates whirlpools. It's terrible."

"Actually, it's not," the blonde assured her. "It's a toilet, and it's a pretty great invention. I guess you're used to, like, chamber pots, or something, but this is a big improvement upon that." Young Regina furrowed her brow at her. "It's not going to hurt you, Regina. It's not even alive. You just do what, you know, you have to do, and then you push that lever, and it gets rid of it. Eliminates the chore of cleaning the pot. A lot more sanitary."

Regina sat there a moment longer, chin resting on her knees. "Where were you, Emma? Why were you gone so long?"

The Sheriff sighed heavily, realizing she wasn't getting out of this so easily, and sat down on the floor. Round, glistening brown eyes moved their gaze to her questioningly. "I told you. I was trying to figure out how to solve this." It wasn't entirely untrue. That had been what she was doing originally when she and Regina went to talk to Gold. And, technically speaking, the... activities that occured afterward were meant to clear Regina's head, which could only help them fix the problem. So, it wasn't a total lie. "How to get you home."

"You left me with these strangers," she frowned at the wall. "With _Snow White_. She's even worse grown up."

Emma snorted with laughter, drawing those eyes back on her. "For all your differences, there is one thing all three of you Regina's have in common: you all really don't like my mom." She softened her expression and placed a hand over the girl's. "I'm sorry if you felt like I abandoned you or if you were scared. You've got to undestand: it isn't practical to expect the two of us to be together all the time. It's just not going to work that way. I mean, I have a job, and I'm trying to fix this whole thing. I can't be available to you all day, every day." She smiled. "But I can promise to dedicate a portion of every day to you." Young Regina perked slightly at that in interest. "And I promise that, whenever you need me-really need me, like, in the case of an emergency-I will be there as fast as I can. Does that sound fair?"

She nodded. "Yes. I like that."

"Good," Emma smiled. She stood and offered her hand. "Am I forgiven now?"

The young woman took her hand and allowed her to help her out of the tub. She beamed at her. "Of course you are." She threw her arms around the Sheriff, burying her face in her shoulder. "I can't be mad at you, Emma."

"Good to know," the blonde said with a small smile. "Although, I think you might be the only Regina of that opinion."

From the open doorway of the bathroom, Regina stood and watched as Emma soothed her younger self. She saw how gentle the Sheriff was with the girl, how caring and compassionate. How she held her so carefully as if out of fear of breaking her. It was a side of Emma that she rarely let show. The maternal side. The soft side. A childhood of cruelty in the foster system had tried to stomp that side of her out, but it had only taught her to keep it hidden. In that moment, Emma Swan seemed to glow, and Regina couldn't deny a warmth that rose in her chest.

"Magnificent, isn't she?" The voice that Regina recognized as her own made her frown, the warmth dissipating in a second, and she rolled her eyes to her side. The Evil Queen stood there, her eyes on Emma, with a wide, almost ravenous smile. "Such goodness and kindness." Her smile faltered slightly when she saw Emma instructing the younger Regina how to use the toilet, flushing it for her to see it wouldn't hurt her. "What is that beastly contraption? Some kind of torture device?"

"You hate anything good," Regina said, ignoring her question. "I'm surprised you're not wretching in the corner."

"I do typically hate such virtue," the queen admitted, "but Emma makes it look quite good. Don't you agree?"

"You'd be smart to leave her alone," Regina tossed back, turning her attention back to the Sheriff. "She may be the Savior, but there's a dark side to her as well. Emma makes a great ally but a terrible enemy." She snorted. "Trust me, I know. I've been on either side of her, and I much prefer being on her list of friends."

"I'm well aware of her darkness, dear," the queen smiled. "I've seen her heart, remember? It will be oh-so enjoyable to help that darkness spread."

Regina's eyes nearly bulged out of her head, and she spun on her heel to face the smirking queen. "You stay away from her, do you understand? I will not allow you to corrupt her and make her into a monster like you!"

"Ooh, touchy," the queen teased. "You're awfully sensitive about the Savior, dear. Why do you care so much?"

Regina hesitated. "That... Emma is Henry's birth mother. When you hurt her, you hurt him, and I won't let that happen."

"Nice save, but you can't hide that you care for her."

"Of course I do. For all her faults, she's my friend."

"Friend." The queen's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Of course. Friend. You know, dear, you looked awfully flushed this evening when you and the Savior arrived here. Tell me, what were the two of you doing together tonight anyway?" Regina glared at the smile on her counterpart's lips, wracking her brain for some kind of excuse. The pause was too long, though, and the queen cackled. "Ah. I see."

"You see what?" Regina growled. "I don't care what you think you know. Emma and I are friends, and, soon enough, it won't matter what you say. I'm putting you back wherever the hell you came from."

"Oh, you mean here?" She gestured to the mayor's head. "I'm apart of you, dear. Inside of you. I am you, and you'll never change that."

"You're wrong," Regina frowned. "I'm not the same woman I used to be."

"You can hide me under blankets of self-assurance all you like," the queen taunted, "but I'm still there. I will always be there. Your heart is black, dear, and that's something you can't change even if you try." She grinned. "See you soon." She disappeared in a swirl of smoke, leaving the mayor with a frown and a heavy mind.

Emma walked out of the bathroom with the younger Regina glued to her side and smiled at the mayor. "Hey. Can I ask a favor?" No response. "Regina? Hello? You home?" She snapped her fingers and caught the mayor's attention at last.

"What?" She said with a frown, looking up. "What is it?"

Emma furrowed her brow in concern. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," Regina nodded absently. "I'm fine, of course. What do you want?"

"Well, this apartment's pretty full as is," she said. "I mean, with my parents, me, and Henry here. I know this may be a lot to ask, but could she stay the night at your place?"

"You'll be with me, won't you?" The younger woman questioned, and Emma looked down at her then back to the mayor.

"Well, that's up to Regina," she said. "It is her house, after all."

"You can both stay the night," the mayor answered.

Emma smiled at her. "Thanks."

"It's no problem at all," she waved her hand dismissively.

"Why don't you go tell Henry goodnight?" Emma suggested to the younger Regina. "I'm sure he'll be disappointed to miss out on a slumber party with you."

"Alright," she nodded and moved off to find the boy.

Emma looked at Regina apologetically. "I'm sorry. It doesn't look like we're going to be able to finish what we started earlier."

"It's alright," the mayor sighed. "Another time. Though with the way she hangs off you, it may not be until after we resolve this issue."

The blonde grinned. "I had a little talk about it with her. She understands that we can't be together all the time so long as I make a certain amount of time for her everyday. Which means my schedule just got a little bit freer." Regina smiled at the mischievous glint in the Sheriff's eyes as she wagged her eyebrows suggestively.

"You're quite ridiculous, dear," she said but couldn't stop a small laugh.

"Probably," she shrugged, "but, I mean, we do live in a magical town with a bunch of fairytale characters. So, ridiculous is pretty much the name of the game around here."

Back at Regina's house, Emma tried to get the young woman to fall asleep in the guest room alone, but every shadow scared her. So, resigning to her fate for the night, Emma crawled into the bed beside of the girl. The younger Regina curled up next to her, arms locked around her waist and head resting in the crook her lifted arms. Emma glanced down at the smile on her face as she closed her eyes and began to drift to sleep, and she couldn't stop the slightest smile of her own. Maybe this Regina was irritating, but she was pretty adorable, too. Like a puppy. Lowering one arm, she snaked it around the young woman's shoulders warmly and closed her own eyes.

The mayor stood against the doorframe in the darkness, staring in at the two women lying in the guest bed with a frown. If there was one thing she'd never learned how to do well, it was share.


	7. Chapter 7

Emma sat in the Sheriff's station, feet kicked up on her desk and reclined back in her rolling chair. Her hands were poised over her head, prepared for her three-pointer attempt, a crumpled ball of scrap paper held keenly in one. With her tongue stuck slightly out of her mouth and eyes narrowed in total concentration, she released a long breath and then took her shot. Her green eyes, which had taken on an bluish hue that day, followed the paper ball in slow motion as it soared through the air in a perfect arc before settling cleanly into the waste bin across the room.

"An ace shot at the buzzer!" She cried out to her otherwise empty office, jumping to her feet and throwing her hands in the air. "It's raining three's, and Emma Swan is the all-time champion!" She mimicked a cheering crowd as she praised herself, bowing to her imaginary audience.

"Very mature, dear." Emma spun at the husky voice, eyes wide. She floundered over syllables as the Evil Queen stepped through the doorway towards her, smiling devilishly. "Tell me, is this what they pay the Sheriff for in this town?"

Emma shrugged. "When there aren't any emergencies to tend to, yeah, pretty much." She sat back down at her desk casually. "I actually have a shit-ton of paperwork I should be doing right now, but, y'know, I'm not."

"You always shirk your responsibilities?" The queen asked with an arched eyebrow.

"As often as possible, yes," the blonde grinned, and the dark woman laughed in response. Emma took a moment to stare at her, feeling that light, airy laugh seep into her body. There was a light in the queen's smile. Nothing dark. Nothing evil or diabolical. It was beautifully familiar to the young Sheriff.

The queen caught her eyes. "Have a staring problem, do we?"

Emma smiled. "Not usually, but right now, yes. It's so weird, you know? I mean, you're the Evil Queen. The big bad wolf who sent us all here. The monster under the bed. You're the one person I'm supposed to hate and be the most afraid of. Or at least, that's what everyone's told me." She shrugged her shoulders. "But, the thing is, I don't hate you, and I'm not scared of you. Sure, you've got your... um, quirks, but you don't seem so evil to me."

"And how do I seem to you?" The queen asked. Her smirk remained as playfully wicked as ever, but her voice was laced with geniuine curiosity.

Emma's smile remained soft. "You just seem like Regina to me."

All pretense melted from the queen's expression with that single statement. No one had ever said that to her. No one had ever allowed her to be just Regina. Not since Daniel. For her mother, she'd had to be the perfect daughter. For Leopold, she'd had to be his dutiful wife and Queen. For Snow, she'd had to be the replacement mother who would never be good enough. For her father, she'd had to be the strong one to carry his weaknesses. To the kingdom, she was the Evil Queen. The bitter, angry creature they had made her into. No one had ever thought about who and what she wanted to be, not in a very long time.

No one except Emma Swan.

She felt a wetness in her eyes and a tug at her heart, both of which felt foreign to her after so many years of wearing her mask, and quickly composed herself. She wasn't quite fast enough, though. Emma had noticed the slip of the facade, the crack in the wall. She had seen the glimmer of the woman she knew so well. The woman she dreamed about at night.

"Well, you're foolish to not fear me," the Evil Queen said in a thick voice. "You've heard all the stories-they're true. I could kill you easily."

"You could," Emma granted with a nod, then smiled knowingly, "but you won't."

"What makes you so confident?" The brunette smirked.

"Because you're using me to fuck with Regina," the Sheriff sighed, and the queen frowned slightly. Had she been so transparent? "If you kill me, that game is over, and we both know you love to play games." Emma winked at her. "I'm really good at reading people."

"Maybe I won't kill you, Savior." The queen sauntered up to Emma, sashaying her hips. She leaned over the seated blonde, her hands gripping the arms of the chair as she lowered herself so they were only mere inches apart. "But I could corrupt you." She grinned at how the Sheriff's eyes flickered from her lips to the generous amount of cleavage that her dress allowed, totally entranced. "By the looks of things, it wouldn't be so difficult." She moved closer to the blonde, and their breath mingled. "The forbidden fruit always tastes the sweetest, dear."

Emma swallowed, losing herself in those dark eyes. "... Regina."

"Knock, knock-whoa!" David frowned and immediately went for his gun. "Get away from my daughter, witch!"

The queen straightened up, leaving Emma in a breathy, shocked heap in the chair. "Ah, Charming. How... charming to see you again."

"Away from my daughter!" He repeated, the sights of his pistol aimed down at her. "Now! I won't say it again."

"Dad," Emma said once she finally managed to dislodge her voice from the back of her throat. "That's really not necessary. She wasn't going to hurt me." _At least not in a way I wouldn't have enjoyed_ , she added in her head, then cursed herself for it.

"All due respect, but you don't know her like I do, Emma," David insisted, never once moving his eyes from the queen, who looked quite smugly satisfied with the fear he buried underneath his bravado. "She's evil, and she's capable of terrible things. Things you can't even imagine."

"Yes, dear," the Evil Queen grinned back at the Sheriff with eyes that glinted suggestively. "The things I would do to you." She licked her lips hungrily.

Mustering a self-control that she hadn't previously believed herself capable of, Emma ignored her. "All due respect, Dad, but I don't think you know her at all." David frowned at his daughter. "You know the thing you created in your head. The Evil Queen. The monster. She's more than that."

"She is not the Regina you know," he argued.

"Actually, she is," Emma said back, standing to her feet. "She's a part of the Regina I know. A part that I happen to like." She stepped between the queen and her father's gun. "So, unless you want to shoot me, too, you should put the gun down."

David hesitated a moment, eyes locked on the queen, before looking to his daughter and lowering the gun.

"Thank you," Emma sighed, shoulders relaxing.

"She's still dangerous," he told her with a stern look.

"I know that," the blonde admitted with a nod, "but she hasn't done anything wrong. You can be paranoid all you like, but no one is coming after her unless she does something to deserve it. Or else they'll have me to deal with."

"Emma, I-"

Before he could finish, a hand gripped Emma's shoulder tightly. She looked down just in time to see black, neat nails glossing back at her before everything was enveloped in purple smoke.

"Emma!"

When the smoke finally subsided, Emma found herself standing in the middle of The Rabbit Hole. There was a stir from the other patrons of the bar at the shocking intrusion, but they all fell silent when they caught sight of the Evil Queen. Emma started to fall forward, lightheaded as she always was after apparating, but a hand keenly grabbed her wrist and steadied her. Looking back, Emma saw the queen standing there and smiling at her.

"Easy, dear," she said. "I came here for a drink-don't tell me you're already drunk."

"Magic makes me dizzy," Emma excused. "Why did... You want to have a drink with me?"

Regina's eyes danced with mirth. "I'd love to."

Emma hesitated, then shrugged. "Why not? David just took over at the station for me, so I'm officially off the clock. And I could use something strong. Although, y'know, you could've just asked me to grab a drink with you rather than all the theatrics." She saddled onto a stool at the bar and looked back at the queen. "You joining me?"

Regina shook off her initial shock at how easily Emma agreed to drink with her and took the seat across from her. "Of couse, dear."

The queen ordered herself a Brandy while the off-duty Sheriff decided upon a talk, dark beer.

"So, thanks," Emma said, looking at the woman beside her who knit her brow. "For not crushing my heart when we first saw each other. I don't think I ever thanked you for that."

The queen laughed. "You're thanking me for not killing you?"

"More or less, yeah," Emma smiled. "I know that must've taken some restraint at the time."

Somewhat," Regina nodded. "I am thankful I didn't, though. I cannot imagine who unbearably dull this town would be without you in it, Savior."

"Well, you know me," the blonde shrugged. "I'm like a big bottle of tequila: the party doesn't start until I walk in." She looked up. "Speaking of-can we got some tequila shots over here please!"

"Are you trying to get me drunk?" The queen teased.

"I'm trying to get _me_ drunk," Emma corrected. "It's been a tough couple of days. Younger you has been following me around like a lost puppy, and present day you has been biting my head off every two seconds because of how stressed out she is. I need-no, I deserve some goddamn tequila."

The queen looked over the Savior's face carefully. "She should treat you better." Emma looked back at her in surprise. "You're very good to her, and she doesn't deserve it. She's very fortunate to have someone like you in her life." A wry smile separated plump, blood red lips. "As a _friend_ , of course."

Emma eyed her strangely. "Regina is my friend, and I care about her. She's come a very long way over the years, and she deserves to be happy more than anyone I know. I'm the Savior, and I'm going to help her find her happy ending. Whatever, or whoever, it is." She took a sip of her beer to hide her cringe. It was something Emma had given more than a small amount of thought to. What would happen when she did find Regina's happy ending? When she found her True Love? Obviously, hers and the mayor's fuck-buddy relationship would come to an end. Emma didn't know how she would deal with that. How she could walk away from one of the only things that made her feel really alive anymore.

The Evil Queen noticed the Savior's strange, pained expression, and she frowned. This was curious. She opened her mouth to speak but was promptly interrupted.

"What in the bloody hell is this!" They both looked up to see Killian Jones standing behind them, eyes lit in rage as he looked between the two women and their uncomfortably close proximity.

Emma groaned, letting her head fall on the table. "Hook, what do you want?"

"I want to know what's going on here, Swan!" He ordered. "I want to know what you're doing hanging out with the likes of her!"

"I'm sorry, but what is the one-handed wonder doing here?" Regina said, and Hook's eyes narrowed.

"I'll gut you," he growled at her, extending his hook out.

"No, you definitely won't," Emma snapped, standing and stepping into her ex-boyfriend's face. She'd broken up with him months ago, but he still hadn't grasped the concept that they were no longer together. That she didn't want to see him anymore. She couldn't quite understand why. There had been none of that "it's not you it's me" or "we should stay friends" bullshit. She'd told him outright that she didn't want to be with him anymore. That she didn't care for him the way he needed her to. She'd told him, and he certainly hadn't taken it well. The amount of drunken phone calls she'd recieved in the middle of the night, both angry and sad, since then was astonishing.

"She's evil, Swan," he maintained, gesturing to the queen. "Pure evil."

"Oh, will you put this fucking thing away?" Emma said, shoving his hook down. "It's not like you're a fucking saint yourself." She looked into his bloodshot eyes that refused to focus. "You're drunk. Surprise, surprise. Go home and sleep it off, Killian."

"You shouldn't be keeping company with her, love," he slurred. "She's dangerous."

"You don't get to dictate who I spend my time with," she said back. "Because we are broken up. Get that in your head. We're no longer together. Not a couple anymore. Old news. Ancient history."

He placed a hand on her waist. "You can say that as much as you like, but it doesn't change the way I feel about you. I can't just turn my feelings off, Emma. I love you."

"You love the idea of loving me," Emma told him, trying to remain patient. "But we are not good for each other. We never were, really. And it's time for you to face up to that."

"You're all I want, Swan," he insisted. "We _are_ good for each other. I'll show you." He tightened his hold on her and smashed his lips against hers. The stench of his rum-soaked breath made her nose crinkle. Emma kept her mouth closed tightly as his tongue fought for entry. _If this is True Love's kiss_ , she thought, _then it's pretty fucking disappointing. And slobbery._

Emma fought to push Hook off of her, but he held on tightly. She was about to lift her knee into his groin when an outside force shoved him off of her. He yelped out as he was thrown backwards, landing hard on his back and skidding back on the floor a few feet before slumping against the wall. Emma frowned and looked behind her. The queen's arm was extended out, palm held out and nostrils flaring. A rage-fueled fire burned in her eyes.

"What the hell?" Hook staggered to his feet and looked at the queen. "You did that! You used magic on me! I'll run you through, you goddamn harpy!" He started to run torward her, sword drawn, but Emma stopped him from advancing past her.

"No!" She shouted at him angrily, and he looked at her. "You're not going to do any fucking thing to her. You're going to walk out that door the way you came, and you're going to leave me-and her-the fuck alone!"

He glared at her. "You're really choosing the Evil Queen over me?"

She shrugged and crossed her arms. "What can I say? She's better company overall." Over her shoulder, the queen sneered smugly.

Hook shook his head, backing away clumsily. "You're bloody insane, Swan. I knew you were fucking damaged in the head, but I didn't know it was this bad. Well, have a great time with your _girlfriend_." He pushed the door open, then looked back over at her icily. "I was growing bored of you anyway, Swan. Plenty other wenches out there without so much fucking baggage."

"Yeah, well, go have fun with them," Emma called back as he staggered out. "Fucking prick."

"You're quite good at picking suitors, dear," the queen noted as they retook their seats at the bar. "He's a real gentleman."

"Yeah, I'm pretty stupid when it comes to guys," Emma admitted, taking another drink of her beer. "I mean, Neal framed me for theft and got me locked up for eleven months. Hook... well, he's just Hook. I know a winner when I see one." She shook her head and downed the rest of her drink, chasing it with one of the tequila shots the bartender poured out for her. The alcohol loosened her tongue, coaxing her into a warm sense of comfort. "That's why I'm giving up on men. Never again."

"Never say never, dear," the queen said back, sipping from her own drink and watching as the Sheriff emptied another shot glass of tequila.

"Oh, I'm saying it," Emma said, looking at the woman beside her with big, serious eyes. "Never, ever, never, ever again. You know, I've never been all that crazy about dudes anyway. I mean, sometimes they're good and all, but there's just... I don't know, there's something about a woman, y'know. Something about someone who knows exactly where to touch you. And women smell better than men, too. Ever noticed that? Like, men have this musk. It's not always bad, but it's a bit too much for me. Women are lighter. Sweeter. Prettier." Emma hesitated. "Y'know, I've never said it before out loud, but I think I might be gay."

"It's certainly a possibility," the queen chuckled.

Emma looked around the bar in front of her. "Why don't I have a drink right now? Bartender-more shots, and keep them coming for me and my friend all night long!"

The Evil Queen smiled as she sipped her drink. _All night long, hm?_ She liked the sound of that.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Thank you all for your feedback! I appreciate all the words of encouragement and support immensely. I have no intentions of leaving this story unfinished, though the updates may not be as frequent as previously. I have a novel in the works currently, and it's taking a lot of my time. The good news is that it's halfway finished. The bad news is I still have half of it go. While it may be a major focus of mine, though, I promise not to leave this story hanging. As I've said before, this is my first ever fanfic, and I didn't think I'd enjoy writing it as much as I have. Please continue to review, follow, and favorite, guys! I love reading your comments!

* * *

 _I'm dead._

It was the first thought that registered in Emma's aching head when she woke. She had to be dead. No one could feel that terrible and still be alive. She had to have died in her sleep last night. _How'd it happen?_ She wondered. Did she choke on her own vomit? She cringed in disgust and horror at the thought. Maybe she just passed out and stopped breathing. Wouldn't be the worst way to go for someone who'd been in life-threatening danger more times than she could count. Maybe she went out and did something stupid to get herself killed. Ran out into ongoing traffic? Climbed to the top of the clock tower and took the plunge? Jumped into the harbor and drowned?

 _Maybe the Evil Queen got to me._

The thought only graced her mind a moment before she dismissed it with a snort. No way. The Queen, evil or not, wasn't about to kill her. They had too much fun together.

With a loud sigh, Emma forgot all of her melodramatic thoughts and opened her eyes. She wasn't dead, not by a long shot. She was actually in a vaguely familiar bed in a vaguely familiar room at Granny's. She took in the faded, chipping wallpaper and the plush, distastefully floral bed spread under her. The same room she'd stayed in when she first came to Storybrooke. Sitting up, she winced at the sunlight seeping through the white linen curtain and groaned, rubbing her head.

"My heartbeat is in my head," she mumbled to herself, eyes squeezed closed. "That can't be healthy."

Once the throbbing in her head subsided as much as she was sure it would until she'd taken an aspirin, Emma stood to her feet and pulled her shoes on. She was still wearing her clothes from the night before, and she tried to remember what exactly had happened that night. She remembered sitting down to have a beer with the queen. She remembered Killian showing up and screwing everything up, and she remembered how her drinking had rapidly increased from there. After her sixth or seventh shot of tequila, it all became a big blur. How had she gotten to Granny's to begin with? As she pulled her knotted and mangled hair back out of her face, a folded note on the nightstand caught her eye. Frowning slightly, she walked over to it and opened it up. The neat yet extravagant scrawl told her exactly who it was from.

 _Don't let them change you, Savior. Sleep tight._

Emma frowned. What the hell was that supposed to mean anyway? Don't let them change her? 'Them' who? What had she said to the queen while she was drunk? It didn't make any sense to her. As hard as she tried to conjure up any memories from that night, it all came up a hazy blank space.

"Whatever," she shook her head, shoving her hands in her pocket and heading for the door. She didn't have the time or energy to sit and wonder what went through the Evil Queen's head.

She walked downstairs into the diner and walked up to the front counter. She was painfully aware of how every eye in the place fell on her, and the voices suddenly dropped to whispers. Frowning, she sent them all a glare that told them all promptly to mind their own fucking business. It got their eyes off of her but did little to discourage their murmurs.

"Hey, Em." Ruby walked behind the counter to her with a small smile. Much smaller than the normal wolf's grin she would receive from the waitress.

"Hey, Rubes," Emma yawned. "Can I get a coffee to go, please? The strongest you've got-not that watered down crap Granny usually gives me."

"Heard that," the old woman barked from across the restaurant without looking up from the cash register she was double-checking.

Ruby chuckled. "Of course." Reaching back, she grasped the coffee pot and filled a large Styrofoam cup with it. "After the state you were in last night, I figured it'd only be a matter of time before you came asking for caffeine."

"You saw me last night?" Emma frowned.

"Em, everyone saw you," she laughed. "Literally, everyone. You walked all over town, shouting and singing. Badly, if I may add. You and the Evil Queen."

The blonde's eyes widened. "The Evil Queen sang?"

"No," Ruby shook her head. "You made all the noise. She seemed to be in better condition than you. She just walked you here from The Rabbit Hole. Escorted you up to your room for the night. She was very-" the brunette thought a moment- " _gentle_ with you. Surprisingly so. Granny and I were shocked."

"She's a lot nicer than anyone gives her credit for," Emma shrugged, taking a sip of the coffee and sliding Ruby a five dollar bill. "Keep the change."

"A three dollar tip for a two dollar coffee?" Ruby raised her eyebrow before snatching the money off the counter. "Don't have to tell me twice."

Emma grinned despite the pounding in her head. Very few people could make her smile when she felt that much like shit, but the brunette wolf was definitely one of them. "I'll see you around, Rubes."

Bundling into her jacket and scarf, wrinkled and ruffled from the previous night, Emma pushed the door open and stepped outside onto the sidewalk. When the chilly, late-autumn wind stung her cheeks, she shivered and sought refuge in her coffee. She really needed to get home and change and shower. So, she dropped her head in the hopes of avoiding being stopped by anyone along her way and moved forward.

She hadn't gotten five feet before her name was called.

"Emma!"

The blonde groaned, head falling back and legs stilling. Of course. It had been too much to ask in that town to not be stopped by someone. Turning, she looked to see the younger Regina racing towards her, a big smile spread on her lips. Following close behind her was an apologetic looking Henry. It had only taken him one glimpse of his birth mother from far off to see that she wasn't feeling very well. He'd tried to steer the young version of his adoptive mother away from her before she spotted her, but the girl had been quicker than he'd given her credit for.

"Regina," Emma sighed as the girl raced up to her and threw her arms around her. Regina buried her face in the Sheriff's shoulder, enjoying the secure feeling of the blonde's arms loosely hugging her back. "What are you doing out here?"

"I took her for a walk," Henry answered, stopping a few steps shy of the two.

Emma gave him a stern look. "Henry, she's not a dog."

"Oh, a butterfly!" The girl skipped along after the flutter of blue wings, grinning excitedly at the sight.

Henry smirked. "Isn't she, though? Honestly, I can't find any differences between her and a Golden Retriever."

The Sheriff couldn't help but laugh. Her son was another on the list of people who could make her happy regardless of the circumstances. "You've got a point there, kid."

"So, you look like crap this morning," he noted as the two trailed behind the giddy Young Regina, who was now preoccupied with a child riding his bike ahead of her.

"Wow, thanks," Emma snorted. "Can't for the life of me figure out why you don't have a girlfriend." He shot her a sore look while his face burned a hot red. "Unless..." Her eyes widened when he refused to meet her gaze. "Henry Mills, you _do_ have a girlfriend!"

"No, I don't!" He argued, but his voice broke.

"You do," she said. "What the hell, kid? Why didn't you tell me? I mean, I can understand not telling Regina, but why not me? I'm the cool one."

He raised his eyebrows at her incredulously. "The cool one?"

"Absolutely," Emma said back. "I'm rad." He rolled his eyes while she smiled. "Seriously, kid. Who's the girl?"

He hesitated a moment before sighing. "Her name is Grace. She's in my class at school."

"Jefferson's daughter?" She questioned, and he nodded. "She seems like a nice kid, even if her dad is a little... unhinged." The corners of her mouth turned down slightly at the memory of her first meeting with the Mad Hatter. Since finding his daughter, Jefferson's mental state seemed to have improved greatly, and he hadn't caused any trouble in town. Still, the Sheriff couldn't help but be suspicious of him-you never forget your first kidnapper, as they say. "So, are you two official?"

"Official?" He frowned. "I don't even know what that means, Ma."

"It means, like..." Emma thought a moment. What did it mean anyway? It wasn't like she had a lot of experience with "official" relationships. At least not the ones that mattered. Her thoughts flashed to a certain dark-haired mayor, but she dismissed it immediately. This wasn't about her. This was about Henry. "It means you both know that you like each other. You go on dates, and you hold hands in public. You even kiss in public sometimes. It means you think about your future with each other, even if you don't necessarily talk about it out loud. It means you feel secure in the relationship. You know her, and she knows you."

Henry thought on that for a moment before smiling up at his mother. "Then, yes. We're official."

"Good for you, kid," Emma smiled, looping her arm around his neck. She decided not to dwell on the fact that her son had a more stable love life than she did. "Now, we get to to talk about the birds and the bees."

Her son's face turned an even deeper shade of red than it had before. " _Ma!_ "

She laughed at his mortified whining and ruffled his hair. "Relax. We won't have the talk just yet. I mean, your other mother has to be present for that, too." He was practically purple at that point. "I don't know what's going to be more fun honestly: watching you squirm or her try and explain it to you."

"You're the worst," he grumbled, but there was no conviction in his words.

"Love you, too, kid."

"Ah!" The younger Regina fled back to Emma, practically knocking her over when she clung to her desperately. "It's a monster!"

"What?" Emma frowned and looked ahead of them. The reflective shimmer of sunlight against a jet black car either made her heart jump in excitement or dread-she wasn't sure which. When she caught a glimpse at the livid brown eyes inside, it became clear that it was the latter. "That's not a monster, though she may just kill me."

The car came to a screeching halt in the middle of the road, and the door was thrown open. Regina stormed out of her Benz and approached a very nervous looking Swan.

"Hey," Emma greeted with a weak simper of a smile. "How are you this morning, Madame Mayor?"

"What the _hell_ were you thinking?" Regina demanded, and Emma sighed. So much for the civil approach. Giving her a side glance, she gently pushed the younger Regina towards Henry. Thankfully, she didn't protest or ask any questions. "Have you gone completely out of your mind?"

"Not completely," the blonde said, looking down at her shoes. "Maybe a little bit, though."

"What's going on?" Henry asked, looking between his two mothers skeptically. "Why are you yelling at her, Mom?"

"Because she's an idiot!" The mayor snapped, and Emma flinched at the viscous tone in her voice. "Your mother decided it would be a great idea to go out for drinks with the Evil Queen!"

Henry's jaw dropped, and he looked wide-eyed at Emma. "You did?"

"It wasn't really a conscious decision," the Sheriff mumbled, her eyes still trained on a scuff mark on her right boot. "It just sort of... happened."

"Yes, it just happened," Regina growled. "It happened, and I got to hear about it from a drunken voicemail you left me at three in the morning. About how she's really not so bad and a 'whole lot of fun.'" Emma frowned, cursing her drunk self. "And then your parents are ringing my phone off the hook."

"My parents?" The blonde looked up at last, brow furrowed. "Why would they call you?"

"Because they're concerned about you!" Regina shouted, and Emma shrank a few sizes. "Everyone is! Can't you wrap your thick head around that? Your mother's convinced that she's got you under some infatuation spell, and your father thinks your brainwashed."

"I'm not under a spell," Emma said back firmly.

"Oh, I know," the mayor glowered at her. "That's what makes it so ridiculous. You've done a lot of stupid things before, Emma, but this one really does take the cake."

"I'm sorry!" Emma shouted. Angry tears welled up in her throat and eyes, and she fought against them in frustration. She was the Savior and the Sheriff of Storybrooke. More than that, she was Emma fucking Swan. She didn't cry. "I'm really sorry that I'm such an idiot and inconvenience to you, Regina! I apologize for being a giant fuck-up, alright? I'm sorry that I brought Marion back here and screwed everything up between you and Robin-I really am sorry! And I'm sorry I'm still doing stupid shit all the time! But you'll have to excuse me if I don't entirely get the fact that people actually give a fuck about me-after twenty-eight years of being an unwanted orphan, it's not an easy concept for me to understand! And I'm sorry if I like the Evil Queen, even though she's not really that evil. In fact, she's pretty fucking cool and fun. I don't know why that's so hard for you to understand. I mean, she's you, and you already know that I l-" Emma choked over the word a moment before swallowing it- "that I like you. It shouldn't be such a surprise that I like her, too."

Regina stood there a moment, all rage gone from her expression and replaced by shock. "Emma, I..."

"I'm not talking about this anymore," Emma shook her head. "My head hurts. My coffee's officially cold. I'm wearing last night's clothes, and I really just want to take a shower and go back to sleep. So, please, do me a favor, and just leave me alone."

That said, she gave Henry a half-hearted goodbye before walking away from the group. Regina watched her go, mouth hanging open. There were so many things she wanted to say. So many questions she wanted to ask. Apologies she wanted to make. The look of pain in Emma's eyes-the _tears_ , for God's sake-had cut her more than any blade could. Emma wasn't supposed to look like that. She wasn't supposed to get her feelings hurt, and she certainly wasn't supposed to cry. But she was hurt, and it was all Regina's fault. She wanted to scream out how sorry she was for everything. For the curse that orphaned Emma as a baby. For the guilt trip she'd been putting her through since Robin left. For the awful things she'd only just said to her. Somehow, though, her voice was trapped in the back of her throat. For the first time in her life, Regina Mills found herself speechless. By Emma Swan, no less.


	9. Chapter 9

Regina sat behind her desk, pen in hand and hovering over a mountain of paperwork. She had a ridiculous amount of work to do. Storybrooke's annual Fall festival was only a few days away, and there were still preparations to be made to ensure it went over without a hitch. She should've been working. She should've only been thinking about her responsibilities as mayor. Instead, though, she couldn't seem to scrub the image of a crying Emma Swan from her mind. Everything else seemed trivial in comparison.

 _God, how does she do this to me?_ Regina thought, pinching her brow and frowning. Ever since she arrived to Storybrooke, Emma had always had this power to consume all her thoughts and energy. At first, it had been focused on getting rid of her. Plotting to get her out of town and away from Henry. Now, though, it was different. It had been for a long time, if Regina was honest with herself. Because, as much as she had tried, it really was impossible to hate Emma. She was like a puppy. Too kind and good-hearted. She was too funny and cute.

"Cute?" Regina repeated out loud, eyes wide. "Where the hell did that come from?" While she certainly admitted to Emma's physical beauty-she wouldn't be sleeping with her if she wasn't almost uncontrollably attracted to her-the term "cute" had never come into play. Somehow, it was more intimate than beautiful. When Regina said cute, she wasn't just talking about how Emma looked. She was talking about who she was. How she would crack a sarcastic joke in even the most stressful of situations. How she fawned over Henry, loving him and teasing him at the very same time. How she had done continually worked to ease the pain and tension Regina had felt since splitting herself. She was considerate and sweet. She'd put her life on the line for her family as well as those she didn't even know more than once. She was compassionate and loyal to the people she cared about.

 _And somehow you fall into that category._

It was true. Regina knew that Emma cared about her-the woman didn't really put forth much of an effort to hide it. She'd told her as much before. It was Regina who fought against it. She was the one who buried her emotions down under a mound of fear and resentment. She pushed away anyone who tried to care for her with the sole exception of Henry. It was such a foreign feeling to her, though. Something that she hadn't felt in such a long time. The idea that anyone would _want_ to be with her. Would care for her. Would love her.

Her mind shot back to Emma's words that morning. She'd cut herself off. Maybe she thought Regina didn't notice it, but she had. The word 'like' was not the one that Emma had first intended to say. Or perhaps she hadn't intended it at all. Perhaps the beginning of a much bigger four-letter word had just slipped past her unguarded lips. Perhaps it was a mistake. Whatever the case, Regina couldn't get the sight of Emma's wide, red-rimmed eyes when she'd said it out of her head.

"I was too hard on her," she sighed to herself, dropping the pen and abandoning all pretense of work. "I said those hurtful things, and she didn't deserve it. " While Regina still felt Emma had been incredibly foolish and careless to spend any time with the Evil Queen, not to mention get drunk with her, she knew that she'd overreacted. Emma was safe, after all. It'd only taken one look into those green eyes to tell her that the queen hadn't placed her under any kind of enchantment or curse. She was Emma, and she was fine. Not a scratch on her. Just a headache caused by her own self-indulgence. Regina had blown things out of proportion. What she couldn't understand was why.

"You were jealous."

Regina rolled her eyes up from the sleek, white stone of her desk to the woman who stood in front of the fireplace. She looked around the office with glinting eyes a moment before plucking an apple from the bowl on the table and slicing into it with one sharp fingernail.

She smiled at Regina. "Excellent taste in decor, dear. Good to see at least part of me hasn't been destroyed in this land."

"What did you say?" Regina narrowed her eyes at the Evil Queen, standing to her feet.

"You were jealous," she answered. "You were jealous that Emma spent time with me and had fun. You're jealous that she likes me. That's why you reacted so harshly this morning." The corners of Regina's mouth pulled down, and the queen's smile widened. "I'm in your head, dear, remember? I know exactly how you think."

"I'm not jealous," Regina huffed.

The queen tossed her head back and laughed. "The funniest part of that is that you actually believe you're convincing when you say it. You've been greener than our dear sister ever since me and that other one showed up here in your beloved town."

"I'm only thinking of Emma's safety," the mayor maintained. "Anything could've happened last night."

"Anything could've happened," the queen nodded, "but nothing did. The Savior and I only talked, and we both enjoyed ourselves." She peered at the apple still poised in her hand, expression softening slightly. "She's quite the conundrum. I'm the very woman who has tried to kill her parents on numerous occasions. I've murdered and tortured more people than I can even keep track of. I'm the one who cast the curse that made her an orphan and caused all her problems. Yet she still shows nothing but compassion and kindness towards me. She even claims to believe in me to be good beneath it all." Her eyes flashed back to the mayor with a grin. "Hard to imagine she comes from Snow White." For all her hope speeches, the idiot Snowflake had never had faith in the queen to be anything more than evil.

"What all did she say to you last night?" Regina questioned.

The Evil Queen smirked. "Now, dear, that is between me and Emma."

"Well, I'm you, so tell me."

The queen laughed again. "If you truly believed that, I wouldn't be here anymore, would I?"

Regina pursed her lips. "No. I suppose you wouldn't. Just... promise me something. Promise me that you won't hurt her."

The Evil Queen stared at the mayor a long moment, her expression totally blank and unreadable. She didn't look like the queen then, even with her over-the-top gown and wild makeup and hair. There was no malice in her eyes, no vicious smile. She just looked like Regina. "I would never dream of hurting her."

The mayor paused, dragging her voice out of the back of throat. "You love her, don't you?"

The smile that graced the queen's lips wasn't devious. It was knowing. "Funny, dear. I was about to ask you the same thing."

With that, she disappeared in a purple mist, leaving nothing behind but the sweet, spicy scent of lingering magic. The mayor sighed exhaustively and sank down into her seat, fingers resting on her temple.

* * *

When Emma got back to the apartment, she was no longer crying, but she did have a serious case of the sniffles, which was almost worse than tears to her. She felt like a dumb kid, rubbing her at her running nose, her breaths shuddering. Her hangover was little more than a memory. The pain she felt as she pushed the front door open and stepped inside was cutting into her chest like a knife. Regina's words kept playing over and over in her head. She was an idiot, and she was inconsiderate to never think of how people would react to her going out with the Evil Queen. And she could kill her drunk self for calling Regina. That had only made things worse. Even with all that, though, she couldn't make herself regret spending time with the queen. Despite everything, she'd had fun, and she'd probably do it again. Because time with Regina was still time with Regina, even if it was with one of her split personalities.

"Emma!" Her parents nearly drowned her in a hug as she walked inside the apartment. "We were so worried about you."

"I'm fine," she said to them both, sniffling and keeping her head down so they wouldn't see how red and puffy her eyes were.

"What did she do to you?" Mary Margaret demanded. "What kind of spell did she put you under?"

"She didn't put me under any spell," Emma shook her head.

"Then why would you ever go out with her like that?" David asked, brow furrowed. _God_ , Emma thought as she fought the urge to roll her eyes, _sometimes you two are as dense as Regina says._

"Because I wanted to go out and blow off some steam," Emma replied. "I wanted a friend and someone to talk to, and that was her. She's fun, and I like hanging out with her. That's why."

"But, sweetheart," Mary Margaret shook her head, "she's the Evil Queen. She's _evil._ It's literally in her name."

"The name you gave her," the blonde argued. "She was the queen first. You decided to label her as evil. And I'm not saying that you didn't have cause for it-I mean, she has done some pretty terrible things, and there's no denying she could benefit from a few sessions with Archie on anger management. But nobody's all bad. No one is beyond saving. Isn't that what you always tell me? There's hope for everyone."

"She is passed that, Emma," her mother maintained.

"Why?" Emma demanded, anger rising up in her chest. "Why is she the only one you think is so bad she can't change? You didn't think that about Hook when I was dating him." Mary Margaret frowned. While she hadn't initially thought the pirate was the best choice for her daughter, she was still confused and irritated that Emma had broken up with him. "I mean, Jesus Christ, Gold is the goddamn Dark One, and you still see something worth redemption in him. Why have you given up on her?"

"She killled my father, Emma," Mary Margaret said. "Your grandfather-she murdered him."

"Oh, you mean the man three times her age she was forced to marry?" Emma countered. "If I was basically a child bride of a neglectful husband still hung up pm his dead wife, I might do the same thing." Mary Margaret gasped. "And if we're talking about parent-killings, you're not exactly innocent in that category either."

"That was different," the pixie-haired woman said darkly. "Cora had to be stopped."

"So you get a pass for murder for what reason?" Emma snapped. "Because you're one of the good guys? Can you seriously not see how hypocritical that is?"

Mary Margaret frowned angrily. "Why are you defending her actions, Emma?"

"I'm not defending her actions," the blonde shook her head. "I'm defending her emotions. Wrong is wrong, no matter what it is or who does it. We all have darkness in it, and we're all capable of evil. My job as the Savior is to restore the happy endings, and that's including Regina's, whatever the hell it is. We've given everyone in this town second chances-it's time we do the same for her."

"Why are you taking this so personally?" David questioned in a soft voice, hoping to calm his daughter. However, the question had the exact opposite effect on Emma.

"Because I've been where she is!" She yelled, and the tears couldn't be battled this time. They flowed freely from her eyes, streaming down her cheeks. "I was the kid nobody understood or wanted-the one they all said wasn't worth the time or effort to get to know! I was the kid everyone thought was rotten and bad! No one ever took the time to think I was worth caring about or loving! That is the worst fucking feeling in the world. All I ever wanted was for someone to look past the scars and the anger and the pain to see that I was just a scared, lost little girl. To prove to me that I was actually worthy of love-and nobody ever did. No one should have to feel that way, not even the Evil Queen." From the nursery in the back room, Neal cried out, waking prematurely from his nap. Emma scrubbed at her eyes. "I'll get him. I really don't want to talk about this anymore."

"Emma-" Mary Margaret started, her own eyes glistening with wetness. Her daughter brushed past her, though, moving briskly to the nursery and closing the door behind her. Mary Margaret's shoulder slumped, and her husband wrapped an arm around her. "I didn't know. I knew she had a bad childhood, but I didn't know how bad." She shook her head. "I'm a terrible mother."

"Snow, no," David whispered to her, kissing her hair. "You're a great mother-to both of our children. Neither of us knew the extent of Emma's pain. We couldn't. Hell, we didn't even know her until recently."

"What can we do?" Mary Margaret questioned.

He paused. "I don't know. I really don't know."

Emma picked her baby brother up out of his crib and held him close, rocking him in her arms.

"It's alright," she whispered down to him, one finger stroking his soft, chubby cheek. "It's alright, buddy. I'm here. Big sister's here." His cries quieted down after a moment or two, and he stared up at her with big, slate-gray eyes. A soft coo left his lips, and he smiled. Emma grinned down at him, cheeks sticky and salty from her tears, and stretched herself out on the small bed that had been placed in the room for Neal once he outgrew his crib. Her legs hung over the edge, but she made herself comfortable anyway, nesting into the pillows with her warm, sweet-smelling brother in her arms. "You always know how to make me feel better, Neal." Then, her smile faltered. "You know, I'm always going to protect you, right? You're a very lucky kid-you've got a lot of people who love you, and I'm one of them. You're never going to have to feel unloved or unwanted, because I won't let it happen. Even if you've got nobody else in the world, you're always going to have me, and that's a promise." She pressed a kiss to his forehead. "I love you, and I'm always going to." She brushed a solitary curl of hair back out of his face. "Can you keep a secret?" He let out a small gurgle that she took for a yes. "I'm going to tell you, because I feel like I've got to tell somebody before I explode. It's pretty big, so get ready." She took a deep breath, lowering her voice slightly. "I think I may be in love with Regina." A big grin broke out across Neal's face, and he giggled excitedly. Emma smiled at him. "There. That wasn't so bad, was it?"

While the Savior and her baby brother drifted off to sleep together, neither of them heard the quiet gasp from other end of the room, nor did they see the pair of wide, forest green eyes gazing through a crack in the door.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Okay, so here's my big apology for not updating sooner. I had a family emergency that took up all of my weekend, but it's settled now, thank God. I know that was one big fucking cliff-hanger to leave you with, and I promise it was not intentional. Thanks again for your reviews and responses. I love reading them all, and I love writing this story. It's not done yet, but we're getting closer. Thank you guys for being so faithful in reading, and please continue!

* * *

Emma walked along the sidewalk, head-down and headphones resting securely in her ear canals. Some song she couldn't readily identify blared out of the phones connected to her iPod. It didn't really matter what the song was, so long as it was loud and angry and fueled the fire inside of the Sheriff.

It wasn't fair, really. She was the Savior. She dedicated an obscene amount of her own personal time to getting everyone else in that stupid town their happy endings. Finding the people they love and reuniting them. It was her speciality. All that time, though, she'd had a nagging question in the back of her head. What about her? Where was her True Love? Where was her happy ending? She could find everyone else's but her own. It wasn't fair. She'd began to think that maybe she didn't get one. Maybe, as the Savior, there was a magical clause written somewhere in the contract she hadn't signed that said she didn't get a True Love. She was just supposed to make sure everyone else did. Which, in her opinion, was fucking bullshit. It wasn't like she'd asked for this shit. She hadn't wanted to be the Savior. Gold just fucking signed her up for it. She'd never asked to be everyone's hope for happiness. She just wanted to find her own.

She'd done it, though. She'd found her True Love-or at least the one person in the world she imagined it could possibly be. She'd found someone she knew would give her a happy ending-and that person thought she was nothing more than an idiot.

 _How's that for cruel irony?_ She thought to herself with a bitter smirk. If she ever found the smart-ass who wrote all this story book-fate shit, she'd lay them out flat.

Emma stepped inside Granny's, removing one headphone but keeping her face as stony as before. Hopefully, everyone would see the look in her eyes and leave her the fuck alone. She was in no mood for small talk. It seemed to work as no one said a word to her as she dropped into a back booth. They'd probably all seen the public shaming Regina had given her the day before and knew she was not to be crossed that afternoon.

"Hey, Emma," Ruby said somewhat cautiously. "You want your usual order?"

"Yeah," the Sheriff nodded her head absently. "Thanks."

"Are you alright?" The waitress asked, and Emma bit her tongue to keep from snapping off at her. Ruby was her friend, and she had good intentions. No need to go psycho on her.

"Yeah," the blonde said through clenched teeth. "I'm fine. Just hungry."

"Okay," Ruby nodded, stepping back from the table. It didn't take her wolf sense to pick up on Emma's mood, and she knew better than to push her luck when she was like that. The Sheriff may have been a good friend, but Ruby had seen her when someone got on her bad side, and, though she'd never felt it before, that right hook didn't look like any joke. "I'll have your food out for you."

"Thanks, Ruby." Emma rested her forehead against the table and closed her eyes. She just wanted to forget. She wanted to forget all about the whole Regina-trio problem. She wanted to forget about how pissed off the mayor had looked at her yesterday. She wanted to forget about why she cared so much what Regina thought of her. Ever since she'd confessed her feelings for her son's adoptive mother, she'd felt like complete shit. It sucked. She finally admitted to herself what she really had known for months, but she couldn't do anything about it. She knew better than to think something _real_ could ever happen between her and Regina Mills. She was little more than a sex toy to the mayor, and their relationship would never be anything beyond physical. Hell, with how pissed off Regina had looked the previous day, it might not even be that anymore.

"Emotions suck," Emma mumbled to herself, brow pinched tightly. Whoever said the truth would set you free obviously wasn't talking about love.

"Oh, I agree entirely." The Savior didn't need to lift her head to know who was sitting across from her in the booth. That velvet-like voice and the high-heeled foot that was now rubbing up and down her shin suggestively were more than recognizable. "Except for anger. Anger is a good emotion, and I suggest you hang onto it. Most people say let it go, but they've never felt the sweet release of revenge. Nothing in the world can compare to it." She chuckled seductively. "Well, almost nothing."

Lifting her head and removing the only headphone left in her ear, Emma stared at the Evil Queen, who smiled back at her widely.

"What are you doing here?" She asked in a small voice.

The queen's smile dimmed. "You don't want me here? I thought we had a wonderful time the other night."

"We did," Emma assured her. "I mean, it was fun, and I liked it. But I'm in enough trouble over it right now. If my parents walk in and see us together again, they may literally lock me away in a tower for another twenty-eight years."

"Ah, I see," the dark-haired woman nodded, a glimmer in her eyes. "Your parents."

There was something in her voice that hinted at far more, and Emma didn't like it. "What? Why are you saying it like that?"

"No reason," the queen shrugged her shoulders, and Emma thought it was so strange to see such a regal woman doing something so casual. "We both know, dear, that it isn't your parents you are most worried about being caught by." Emma's lower lip disappeared between her teeth, and she chewed so hard on it that the iron taste of blood filled her mouth. "My better half left quite the impression on you yesterday."

"I just don't want to give her more reason to hate me," the Sheriff muttered, eyes dropping to the floor.

"You think the reason she reacted so harshly yesterday is because she hates you?" The queen asked.

Emma shrugged. "She made it pretty clear what she thinks of me."

"Oh, Emma." The blonde raised her eyes to find the queen smiling at her. "Dear, please, do not be as foolish as your parents. Open your eyes and see what is right in front of you."

Emma looked at her for a moment. She observed the wide, yet warm smile on the queen's lips and the way her dark eyes sparkled at her. There was something in those eyes. Something she couldn't fully read. Or rather something she couldn't wrap her head around. Surely it wasn't what she thought. Then, there was the heeled foot rubbing circles into her calf. It was a soft caress. Not sexually-charged. Not predatory. It was gentle and almost...

Emma shook her head. "Just because you feel that way doesn't mean she does."

"Dear, she is me," the queen said.

"I know that, but she doesn't believe it," the Sheriff said. "She still thinks that all three of you are different people. That the separation isn't just magic." She sighed. "I'm an idiot. I shouldn't have let myself fall for her. I mean, really, what are the odds that someone like her could ever like me? I mean, she was the queen in your world, and she's the mayor in mine."

"You were a princess," Regina reminded her.

"Yeah, for like two seconds," Emma argued. "It's not like I was ever really royal. The only thing I've ever been in my life that I can remember is an orphan. Somebody that nobody wanted or cared about. I'm a loser-I always have been. You want to know what I was doing the day Henry found me? I was blowing out one stupid candle on one stupid cupcake, wishing myself a happy fucking birthday because no one else was around to. How pathetic is that?" She shook her head. "Regina Mills is so out of my league it isn't even funny."

"She's not out of your league," the queen said in a low, serious voice that surprised Emma. Her expression was dark and even angry. For the first time, Emma actually felt a little afraid of her. "You are the one who's too good for her, Emma." The blonde frowned. "You've given her everything, and you've done so much for her. Everyday, you try to make her smile or laugh. You would do anything just to make her happy. You promised to find her happy ending, even when you knew it would hurt you in the end. If she doesn't see how wonderful you are, that's her loss."

"H-How do you know all of that?" Emma asked, eyes wide. "I've never said that stuff to anyone."

The queen smiled. "Let's just say tequila loosens your tongue considerably, darling."

"Oh," Emma frowned to herself, blush rising into her cheeks. "So, when you left that note the morning after...?"

"You told me that you felt like everyone just wanted something from you," she answered. "That all their expectations were crushing you. Your parents want the sweet princess they sent away all those years ago. Henry wants the hero from his story book. This town wants their Savior. You said you felt like they all want to change you from who you are, and mold you into what they need."

"And Regina?" Emma asked, her breath caught in her throat. "What did I say she wanted me to be?"

The Evil Queen's smile softened. "You said you weren't sure what she needed from you, but whatever it was, you'd be it gladly." She placed her hand over Emma's tenderly. "You shouldn't have to change for people, Emma. Especially the ones who are supposed to care about you. They should be content with who you are as you are. Don't let anyone make you feel like you're less than good enough."

Emma smiled, laughing slightly. "Who would've thought the Evil Queen would make such a great therapist? You could run Archie out of business, your Majesty."

"No, I couldn't," the queen shook her head with a grin. "Everyone else would simply get a fireball to the head. My patience and compassion is limited strictly to you, my dear."

Emma started to say something back, but the squealing of tires against pavement sent her attention outside the diner. Standing to her feet, she looked out at the street and gasped at what she saw. Regina's Benz was stopped in the middle of the road, black rubber painted in tracks against the asphalt, while Mary-Margaret stood directly in front of it, a mere inches from the hood ornament. Regina threw her car door open and stormed out, fury burning in her eyes.

"Mom," Emma groaned to herself as she pushed the door to the diner open and stepped outside. "What are you doing?"

"Are you insane?" Regina demanded, marching up to Mary-Margaret with clenched fists that looked like they'd love nothing more than to connect with the schoolteacher's cheekbone. "Or do you simply have a death wish? If so, I will be more than happy to fulfill it."

"Guys, stop." Emma jogged up to the two of them, frowning. "Everyone calm down, okay?" She faced her mother, who offered her little more than a side glance. Emma had never seen her like that before. There was an angry scowl stamped across her usually pleasant face that made her nearly unrecognizable. Emma wondered if she was getting a look at Snow White instead of the Mary-Margaret she'd known for so long. "What's the problem?"

"The problem is your mother is an idiot!" Regina snapped, glaring knives at the pixie-haired woman. She'd long ago dropped any real animosity towards Snow White, but she was beginning to feel that familiar itch to hurl a fireball at the woman's head.

"Like mother, like daughter, I guess," Emma grumbled, and Regina frowned over at her. If Emma had been looking at her, she would've seen the apology that the brunette couldn't voice in her eyes. However, she faced her mother and refused to allow herself a look over at Regina. "What's going on, Mom?"

"I want to know what you've done to my daughter," Mary-Margaret said in a low voice that didn't even resemble her usual chipper tone, "and I want to know it now."

"Excuse me?" Regina cocked an eyebrow at her. "What _I've_ done to your daughter? I think you're confused, dear."

"Mom," Emma frowned. "What are you talking about? Regina hasn't done anything to me."

"Then she did!" She pointed to the Evil Queen who had just stepped out of the diner. Her eyes glimmered evilly at Snow White, and Emma angled herself between her mother and the queen, knowing she was far more a threat to Mary-Margaret than the mayor. "What did you do? Curse her? Put her under some sort of delusion spell? Stealing twenty eight years of her life from me wasn't enough punishment, was it? You have to do this, too?"

"Mom!" Emma's tone was commanding, and they all looked at her. "Stop yelling at her, and calm down. You're not making any sense. I'm not under any kind of spell."

"You must be!" Mary-Margaret insisted, stamping her foot like a petulant child. Emma fought the urge to roll her eyes as she crossed her arms over her chest. "That's the only thing that explains what you said." Emma furrowed her brow, and her mother sighed. "I-I heard you last night... when you were talking to Neal."

Emma's eyes widened. "You were eavesdropping?"

"No," Mary-Margaret shook her head. "I was just worried about you, and I came to check on you. I didn't mean to overhear-it just happened." Her expression hardened. "I know my daughter wouldn't say that. Not unless she was forced to."

"Does anyone want to fill me in on what's going on here?" Regina demanded, looking between the two in frustration. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm not under a spell," Emma said in a voice that was only barely above a whisper. "I know that's hard for you to understand, but it's true. What I said... I meant it." Mary-Margaret's eyes widened as Emma hugged her stomach, eyes on the ground. "I meant all of it."

"How is that possible?" Mary-Margaret asked.

The blonde shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. It just is." She sniffled. "I-I really have to go."

"We need to talk about this," her mother said, and Emma shook her head stubbornly in response.

"No, we really don't," she frowned.

"Emma-" Regina started, seeing the raw emotion on her face even though she didn't understand why it was there. She wanted to reach her hand out to her, but something inside of her wouldn't let her.

"I'm not going to talk about this right now!" Emma snapped at both of them, lifting her head and revealing red-rimmed eyes. "I'm done, alright?" She turned on her heel but then stopped in front of the Evil Queen. Her dark eyes were locked onto Mary-Margaret and glinting maliciously. Her hands were twisted into claws, and her teeth bared like a wild animal. Reaching out, Emma placed a hand on her shoulder, and those dark eyes flickered down to her. "Don't. It's not worth it. You're better than that."

There was hesitation as the queen looked from Snow White, the woman she'd spent years trying to kill, to Emma Swan, the woman who made her want to be the good person she believed her to be. For a tense moment, no one moved. The mayor and Mary-Margaret seemed to be holding their breath, waiting for an explosion. Emma, however, was calm and collected. She had total confidence that the queen would make the right choice.

With an audible sigh, the Evil Queen relaxed. She focused her gaze on Emma, who gave her a small, proud smile.

"Thank you, " she whispered to her.

The queen smiled back at her. "Thank you, Savior, for believing in me."

Then, her smile disappeared, and her expression contorted into one of agony. She doubled over, letting out a small grunt. Behind her, Emma heard a small cry and turned. Both Reginas were nearly on their knees, gripping their chests and breathing hard.

"What's wrong?" Emma demanded, eyes wide as she looked between the two women. "What's the matter?"

"I-I don't know," Regina huffed through the twisting pain in her chest. "It... It feels like my heart... it's slowing down." And just then, Emma saw the shudder. The slight draining of color in both of the women. It was like they dimmed slightly. Like they were fading away.

"Ma!" She looked back and saw Henry racing to her, wide-eyed and clearly afraid. "Ma, something's wrong with young Mom-she's in pain!" Her looked to the other two versions of his mother. "They've got it, too? What's the matter?"

"I don't know," Emma shook her head, eyes dark. "But I intend to find out. Stay here with your mothers-take care of them, Henry." He nodded obediently.

The Savior turned and marched down the street, fists clenched and jaw squared.

"Where are you going?" Her mother called, following along behind her.

Emma glared ahead, heart thumping madly as the image of Regina's pained expression flashed in her mind over and over again. "Going to pay the Dark One a little visit."


	11. Chapter 11

"You really need to calm down, Emma. You're angry."

"Fuck yeah, I'm angry," the Savior growled back at her mother, who struggled to keep up with her. "I'm really angry. Did you see what happened to them? That wasn't right. Something's going on, and Gold knows it." She shook her head. "I should've known better than to trust him. Should've known he would do something to get back at Regina. I swear, if something happens to her because of him..." Her sentence trailed off as her fists clenched and jaw tightened. There was a rage boiling inside of her as well as indescribable terror. She couldn't lose Regina. No matter what the mayor thought of her, Emma knew that she couldn't live without her. It didn't matter if they were just friends or even just Henry's mothers. She _needed_ Regina in her life in some capacity. The pain of not being able to have her in the way she really wanted was far less than the pain of not having her at all.

"I understand that you're upset," Mary-Margaret said, trying to reason with her daughter. There was something in Emma's eyes. Something almost... unhinged. It scared the schoolteacher. "But you don't want to do something you're going to regret."

"I'm not," Emma said, eyes tightening when the pawn shop came into sight. "I'm not going to regret this at all."

"Emma." Mary-Margaret placed a hand on her daughter's arm, stopping her. Emma turned her gaze on her and nearly singed the pixie-haired woman with its intensity. "We need to talk about all of this. About your feelings for... for Regina." It seemed to actually physically pain Mary-Margaret to say her name.

"Yeah, I know we do," Emma returned, jerking her arm out of her mother's grasp. "And we will-as soon as we get this figured out. Didn't you see what I did? Didn't you see how hurt they were? And it's happening to the other Regina, too. Something's not right, and I've got to fix it. Whatever it takes." She squared her jaw. "So, yes, Mom, we will talk all about my fucked-up feelings and cry and hug it out later. For now, though, there are more important things to deal with. You're either going to help me, or you're going to leave me the fuck alone. Make your choice."

Mary-Margaret sighed. She knew her daughter, and she knew that there was no talking to Emma when she got like that. Nothing she said would make any difference, and she would rather not end up on the blonde's shit-list, especially when she was that angry. So, she nodded. "Lead the way, Emma. We're going to figure this out."

Emma nodded, shoulders relaxing slightly. "Okay." She turned and continued her march for the pawn shop. "Thank you."

"Let's just see if Gold knows anything," Mary-Margaret said.

Oh, he did. Emma knew he did. She'd had a feeling that little fucker was holding something back when she and Regina first spoke to him what felt like eons ago. She'd seen it in those shifty little eyes. She'd told him what would happen if Regina was placed in any kind of danger, and she was nothing if not a woman of her word.

The bell didn't just ring when Emma threw the shop's door open-it flew off its mount on the wall and bounced into a cluttered corner. Gold and Belle both looked up from each other at the intrusion, and the older man frowned.

"Really, why do I even bother putting the closed sign up?" He grumbled. "I knew you were somewhat dim, Savior, but I was under the impression that you could read."

"Shut-up," Emma snapped and, with a wave of her hand, sent his cane skittering across the store. He fell to the floor, barely keeping his face from hitting the hardwood. A familiar warmth rolled in Emma's chest, spreading throughout her entire body. Magic. She hadn't used it in so long she'd almost forgotten what it felt like.

"Rumple!" Belle ran to her love's side while Emma moved towards them, lip curled. The brunette looked up at her. "Emma, what are you doing?"

"Picking on a cripple, by the looks of it," Gold said back, glowering up at the blonde.

"I'm keeping my word." The Sheriff knelt down so she was eye-level with the Dark One. "I told you that if she was harmed in any way, I'd come back here." A smile crossed her face. "Well, here I am."

"I didn't do anything to her," Gold spat back.

Emma swiped her hand again, and he was thrown against the wall, held up by magical bonds. As Emma approached him, she tightened her outstretched hand, and pressure built around his neck. Squeezing tighter and tighter. Constricting his airway. His face reddened as a vein bulged from his forehead.

"You didn't do anything," she said through grinding teeth, "but you knew it would happen, didn't you?" He gurgled something, and she loosened her grip a bit. "Didn't you?"

"I don't know what-"

She clenched her hand into a fist, cutting his air off completely. "Try again, Gold. And this time, make it the truth. Remember." She tapped her forehead with a smile. "Superpower."

He choked out a cough, and she released her fist. "Yes, I knew."

"What is it?" She demanded, moving closer so they were mere inches apart. "What is happening to her?"

"The three versions cannot exist apart long," he answered. "If they remain separated... they will all be destroyed."

Emma's eyes widened. "You're saying that she'll just... fade away?"

He nodded as best he could under his binds. "Disappear from the fabric of time. Regina's story will be unwritten, and it will be as if she never even existed."

"That means she never would have enacted the curse," Mary-Margaret frowned behind her daughter. "She would've never killed my father and become queen. Never would've sent me into hiding."

"Henry would've never been born," Emma whispered.

"Your father and I wouldn't have found each other," her mother continued, eyes wide. "Emma, without Regina, it's not just Henry who wouldn't have been born. _You_ wouldn't have been, either."

"You knew this, and you didn't tell me!" Emma screamed into Gold's face.

He smiled awfully. "Must have slipped my mind."

"Son of a bitch!" Emma hurled him across the room again, slamming him hard into a glass cabinet and dropping him to the floor. Her chest heaved with fury as she stomped towards him. "Goddamn you, Gold! Don't you get what all that means? You'd risk your own grandson's life to get back at her?"

"Revenge has a way of giving us tunnel vision, dear," he coughed up a splatter of blood.

Emma couldn't control herself. She didn't want to use magic on Gold. She wanted to hurt him with her own fists. To feel the release of her rage in his blood and broken bones. So, she knelt over him, and she started hitting him. Her sight blurred red as did Gold's face. She didn't speak. She didn't even think. All she knew was that she wanted to hurt him, and from the sound of his strangled cries, she was succeeding.

"Emma!" Mary-Margaret pried her daughter off of the crumpled man below her. Emma fought against her as Belle ran to Gold's side to tend to his wounds.

"If something happens to her, I swear to God, I'll kill you!" Emma spat at the man furiously. "I swear, Gold-I'll fucking kill you!"

"Emma, stop." Mary-Margaret stepped in front of the blonde, her hands secure on her shoulders. She'd seen Emma angry before plenty of times, but she'd never seen her like that. Her eyes were... They didn't look like Emma at all. The twisted, downward pull of her features made her daughter almost unrecognizable. Deep down, Mary-Margaret admitted to herself that she was afraid of Emma in that moment. It was the coldness in her eyes. The hatred in them. She'd seen it before but only once. In the Evil Queen. She knew what that look was. It was fear and anger and magic, and that was never a good mixture. She had to bring her daughter back from the dark place she was in. So, she did the only thing she could. She placed a hand on Emma's hot cheek. "This isn't you, Emma. It's the magic. It's made you lose control. You've got to come back to me, sweetie. Come back to me." She wrapped her arms around the stiff woman. "Help me find you, Emma."

Slowly, she felt the Savior melt into her arms, and Emma returned the hug full-force. Her body began to shake as she cried against her mother, big, hot tears tumbling down her cheeks.

"There you are," Mary-Margaret said softly, smiling in relief.

"I can't lose her, Mom," she whispered. "I can't."

"You're not going to," Mary-Margaret vowed, rubbing her daughter's back. The two pulled apart, and she looked into those familiar, soft green eyes, grateful to see them again. "We're going to save her." Emma nodded and glanced back to the nearly unconscious Dark One. She looked down at her hands and found her knuckles painted crimson with his blood.

"I wanted to kill him," she said. "I would have if you hadn't stopped me." She shook her head. "I terrified myself."

"That wasn't you," Mary-Margaret assured her. "Magic feeds off of emotions, and yours were very strong just then. I know you, Emma. You're just scared, but look at me." Emma lifted her eyes up to her mother's. "Regina isn't going anywhere. We're going to fix this."

"I know," Emma nodded, taking a deep breath. "Come on. We've got to find Regina. God knows how much time we have before..." She shook her head, refusing to allow herself to think of what would happen if they were to fail. That wasn't even an option. "Let's go."

A phonecall to Henry told them that he and David had taken all three of the Reginas to her vault. They were all still in terrible pain, and they thought that was the only place that might make them all feel safe. Emma and Mary-Margaret jumped into the blonde's nearby Volkswagon, and Emma sped for the cemetary.

"So... do you want to talk about it?" Mary-Margaret asked uncertainly.

Emma sighed. "No, but I've got a feeling you do." She looked over at her mother. "I'm in love with Regina, Mom. I know it probably freaks you out and pisses you off, but it's the truth. I love her."

"It doesn't freak me out," Mary-Margaret said, and Emma gave her an exasperated look. "Well, maybe it is... unusual. I mean, this is the woman who cursed us all and separated our family for twenty-eight years. Not to mention, my ex-stepmother."

Emma frowned, shuddering slightly. "Yeah, no, we're not going there, Mom."

"I guess I just want to know how?" Mary-Margaret questioned. "When did this happen?"

Emma hesitated before shrugging. "I mean, I don't know the exact moment. I kind of had a thing from her since we first met. Like, I thought she was really hot." Mary-Margaret sucked in a sharp breath, and Emma could've sworn she heard her mutter "porn" under her breath. "I don't know. I guess there's always been an attraction. It didn't go beyond physical until Neverland. We were working together to get Henry back, and she was showing me how to use magic and... I don't know. I saw a side to her that I don't think many people ever have. A softer side. After that, it was like my eyes fully opened to her. I saw every part of her, the good and the bad together, and I loved all of her."

"That's beautiful, Emma," Mary-Margaret smiled at her. "And... does she feel the same way?"

Emma frowned. "No, I don't think so. I mean, we have fun together and the sex is amazing, but-"

" _What_?" Her mother demanded, and Emma's eyes widened. Oops. "You and Regina have... You've... done _that_?"

"Sort of," the blonde said sheepishly.

"Why?" Mary-Margaret asked. "Were... Were you drunk?"

"No," Emma answered honestly. "We've never been drunk when we've slept together."

The pixie-haired woman's eyes nearly bulged out of her head. "You've done it more than once?"

Emma gnawed on her lower lip. "Yeah."

"How many times?"

"Mom, you don't actually expect me to have kept up with every single time Regina and I have been together, do you?"

"Yes, because I know you have. How many times, Emma?"

Emma sighed. Unfortunately, her mother was right. Emma really was _that_ pathetic. "Thirty-two."

"Over how long a period of time?" Mary-Margaret questioned.

"Three months and six days," Emma answered, blushing under her mother's sharp gaze. "We usually meet up a couple times a week. It has happened more than once in a single day before, though."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Emma rolled her eyes. "Seriously, Mom? Did you really want to know that Regina and I were screwing each other?" Another breathed "porn" came from the passenger's seat. "It started after Robin left. It was a comfort thing for her. Something to keep her from being lonely all the time. She was desparate-that's the only reason she agreed to it. I mean, why else would she? I'm the idiot who brought her True Love's wife back from the Enchanted Forest and fucked up her whole relationship. She hates me."

Mary-Margaret frowned. "Emma."

"It's the truth," the blonde shook her head. "I'm not going to fool myself into thinking what she and I have is anything more than physical for her. That doesn't mean I stop caring about her, though. I don't love her because I expect her to love me back. I love her because, well, I just do. And I'm going to do whatever I can to make sure she's happy and undo all the pain I've caused her. No matter what that may mean for me." There was a familiar stinging in her eyes, and she cemented her expression. "Can we stop talking about this? We need to figure out how to make Regina a whole person again."

Mary-Margaret pursed her lips with a sigh before looking away from her daughter's poorly-masked sorrow. "Yes, we can stop talking about it. But, for the record, I don't think she hates you. I've seen Regina hate before, and that's not how she looks at you."

Emma managed a small, grateful smile to her mother's kind words. They were just words, though. Just because Mary-Margaret said it, it didn't make it true, no matter how much Emma wished it was. Pulling her car into the cemetery parking lot, Emma threw it into park and rushed for Regina's vault in the middle of the graveyard. Now wasn't the time to wallow over unrequited love. She had to save Regina. Whatever the cost, she had to save the woman she loved.


	12. Chapter 12

Regina leaned against the cold stone walls of her vault, head held up and face twisted in pain. She felt like she would either pass out or be sick at any moment. Maybe both. Her chest tightened around a steadily shrinking vital organ. It felt like someone was squeezing her heart. Slowly. Methodically. Enough to make her suffer terribly. Slowly, the life was being drawn out of her, and there was nothing she could do stop it.

"Mom, are you okay?" Henry asked her, eyes wide with both concern and fear. He knew it was a stupid question-obviously, no version of his mother was okay-but he didn't know what else to say. He looked as though he was afraid that if he touched her, he might break her. Never had he seen his mother so frail before, and it scared the hell out of him. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Regina managed a small smile at him. "There is something you can do." Reaching out, she took her son's hand and squeezed it warmly. "That's much better."

He nodded his head. "I won't let go, Mom. Ever."

"Thank you," she said, throat scratchy with raw emotion. Looking out at the rest of the vault, she took in the scene before her with a shallow breath. The Evil Queen stood directly across from her, doubled over and gripping the wall for support. She kept her head down, too proud to let her pain be seen by anyone else, and her breaths were muffled and labored. Regina saw the younger version of herself cradled into a ball in the far corner, tears streaming down her face as she rocked back and forth. She'd been asking for Emma almost nonstop for the past fifteen minutes. Regina had tried to be angry with her, but she couldn't find the strength or will. After all, if she was honest, she wanted to see the Savior, too. More than anything, actually. And not just because she knew Emma would find a way to stop the pain she felt then. Just to see the blonde's smiling face, hear her voice, feel her touch-it would help her forget about the pain and the fear she felt then. Somehow, Emma had that effect on her.

"Henry," she said, and he looked back at her. She nodded to her younger self. "Go sit with her. She needs someone, and you're the only person here right now she trusts."

He frowned. "But, Mom, I want to help you."

"Then, please, get her to shut-up and stop crying," the mayor said with the best smile she could muster through her agony. "Please, Henry."

He hesitated, lips pressed tightly together, before nodding and walking over to the girl. He sat down beside of her and awkwardly put his arm around her. She leaned into him, squeezing her eyes closed as he told her it was all going to be okay. Regina felt a beaming pride rise in her chest at him that nearly overpowered her pain. Her son truly was a knight in shining armor, much like his birth mother. If anything happened to her, at least Regina had the assurance that he would be left in good, capable hands.

"Everyone alright in here?" David poked his head down into the vault from the stairs. His hand rested resolutely on the hilt of the sword that, as always, was latched onto his belt.

"Do we look alright?" The queen spat back through clenched teeth, and he frowned.

"We're fine," Regina waved her hand dismissively. "She's just grumpy. Any sign of Emma and Snow?"

"Not yet," he shook his head. "They'll be here, though. Soon." He looked around the room. "If you need anything, just yell."

"Go back to keeping watch, Shepherd," the queen snarled, and he rolled his eyes before returning to the front door of the mausoleum to keep a sharp eye out for either his daughter and wife or trouble. They didn't know what was going on yet, and they couldn't be too cautious at that point.

"I'll be the first to admit that Charming and his true love are irritating," Regina said to herself, "but you should try some manners, dear. That's why you don't have any friends."

"I'm a queen," the darker woman returned sharply. "I don't need people to like me-I need them to fear me. Which they do." She peeked a smile up at her Storybrooke mirror image. "Besides, Emma certainly seems to have taken a liking to me."

"That's because Emma Swan is like a puppy," Regina sighed, pinching her brow. "She likes everyone until they give her a reason not to."

"She didn't like you initially," the queen taunted.

"That's because I didn't want her to like me," Regina threw back at her with a glare. "If I had wanted Emma to be my friend then, trust me, she would've. I'm quite charming when the situation calls for it, as I'm sure you understand. But the only thing I wanted of the Savior then was her out of my town."

"Aren't you glad now she stayed?" Henry piped in with a lopsided smile that reminded Regina so much of Emma that it made her chest ache even more.

"Yes," she answered resignatedly. No point in denying it any longer, especially if she was going to die soon anyway. "I'm very grateful that Miss Swan didn't let me initimidate her and chase her away. I only ever kid myself into believing that the life I led during the curse was happy. I was alone and miserable and still very much angry. It took me a while to see it, but Emma did me a favor in breaking the curse." She shook her head. "Revenge never does fully satisfy."

"Only because you're weak," the queen grunted. "You had all the people who ever hurt or wronged you frozen in a miserable time warp. Snow White was eternally separated from her beloved-that alone should've been retribution enough. But you went soft."

"What is the point in revenge if I'm always alone?" Regina said back. "That's what you don't understand. You've been alone for so long that you don't even remember what it's like to have people you care about. You don't realize that all the revenge in the world doesn't replace friendship and family." She paused. "Or at least you didn't before you met Emma." The queen frowned. "Once again, the Savior defeats the Evil Queen."

"She didn't defeat me," the queen whispered, eyes trained on the floor. "She accepted me for who I am, not who she thought I should be."

"Yes, she has quite a knack for that," Regina said with a low chuckle. She wasn't entirely sure, but she thought that maybe the Evil Queen smiled softly at that. Then, another pain ripped through her chest, and Regina's legs wobbled beneath her. She held onto the tomb in front of her to keep from pitching forward. The young woman in the corner let out a small sob, burrowing closer to Henry. The queen, however, lost her grip on the wall behind her and started to stagger forward, heading for the very hard floor. Before she collapsed completely, Regina darted below her, catching her and holding her up with a strength she hadn't thought herself capable of.

"I've got you," she breathed while the queen ground her teeth at the pain. Slowly, it passed, and all three Reginas seemed to sigh collectively in relief. Then, the queen realized she was still leaning against the mayor, and she quickly scrambled away from her.

"Are you alright?" Regina asked her uncertainly.

"I'm fine," she huffed. "Just lost my balance."

"Probably because of those heels," Henry mused. Both women couldn't help but smile over at him.

"You're very much like Emma, aren't you?" The queen asked with a small smirk.

"Yeah, we're a lot alike," he nodded, "but I'm also like my mom a lot, too. The other day, I even called Ma 'insufferable.'" He chuckled. "She didn't know what it meant."

"That's my boy," Regina laughed quietly.

"It's a pleasure to meet you at last, Henry," the queen said before shooting the mayor a cross look. "It's long overdue. I'm afraid your mother has been hiding you from me since my arrival in your little hamlet."

"Can you blame me?" Regina raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, I can, and I do," the queen maintained stubbornly.

Henry laughed, and they both looked at him. "Sorry. It's just funny. You two think you're so different, but you're actually just alike. I mean, my mom thankfully doesn't go around murdering people or casting curses anymore, but you still talk and act the same." He grinned. "And you're both too stubborn for your own good."

"You're one to talk," Regina smiled thinly at him, and he giggled. "Something I'm not sure if you inherited from me or your birth mother."

"I think I got a double-dose," he shrugged.

The queen looked at him warmly. "You're a fantastic young man, Henry." He blushed. "I'm proud of you. If nothing else good came from this awful town, you did, and that's more than enough."

"Thanks," he murmured, cheeks and ears burning a deep shade of red. Regina couldn't help but smile at him.

"You've done a wonderful job with him." It took a moment for the mayor to realize the queen was speaking to her. When Regina looked at her, she was surprised to find a smile on her red lips. "At least you didn't didn't screw him up."

She pursed her lips at the almost-compliment. "Thanks." There was something in the queen's eyes, and Regina realized that it wasn't an insult directed at her, but at the queen herself. She was thankful that Regina hadn't let her hate and destructive tendencies pour into Henry and corrupt him. "I'm pretty positive he was born that way, though. Son of the Savior and all. How could he not be a hero?"

"She's being modest." The voice made them all turn, and they saw Emma stepping inside the vault, Mary-Margaret and David following a few steps behind her. "He may be my kid biologically, but he's, like, seventy-five percent her." She winked over at her son. "He's always using words on me that I don't understand, but I'm pretty positive their insults. That's all Regina."

"Emma!" The youngest Regina bolted to the Savior, burying herself in her arms. "You're here! You can help us!"

"Can you?" Regina questioned the blonde with a frown. "Did you find out what this is?"

"Yeah," Emma nodded. "Gold decided to keep a little bit of information from us after all." She swallowed hard. "He said the three of you can't exist outside of each other forever. You've all got to come back together, or else... you'll fade away completely." All three Regina's gasped.

"Fade away?" Henry repeated, standing and furrowing his brow. His voice shook with fear. "Like... she'll die?"

"It's more like I will have never even been born," Regina whispered, eyes wide. "Which means the curse will have never been cast. Which means..." She looked up at Emma with wide, terrified eyes.

"Which means what?" Henry demanded frantically.

Emma placed a hand on his shoulder. "It means I never would've been sent here, and she never would've married the King."

"Without Regina," Mary-Margaret stepped in, "David and I would've never met, and Emma would've never been born."

"Which means I wouldn't have been, either," the boy finished in horrified realization.

"So, we've got to fix this and fast," Emma said resolutely and looked to Regina. "We don't know what kind of time frame we're on here, but I'm going to take a leap and guess it's not a very long one. You've got to come to terms with this, Regina. These two women are part of you. They are you."

"I'm trying to accept that," Regina shook her head, "but you don't know how hard that is for me, Emma. I-I've spent so long trying to forget my past. To move on from it. I don't want to be these women anymore! I don't want to be the scared little child who got everything she ever loved taken away from her, and I don't want to be the cruel, evil queen who hurt so many people. They were both alone-always alone-and I can't go back to that!"

"No one's asking you to!" Emma pleaded with her to understand. "We all know that you've changed, Regina. We've seen how hard you've worked to be where you are now, and no one would ever belittle that. But you can't change everything, and that's not necessarily a bad thing."

"You think being like her isn't a bad thing?" The mayor gestured furiously to the Evil Queen, who frowned at the offense.

"No, I don't!" The Sheriff maintained, stepping towards Regina. Why couldn't she get over herself and see the truth? Why couldn't she wrap her thick head around it? "You are who you are, Regina, and that's not a bad thing. Being good doesn't mean you change yourself as a person-you just change your actions. You will never be alone again, Regina! You are surrounded with people who care about you-you're just too blinded by self-loathing to see it."

"Nobody could ever love the Evil Queen," Regina shook her head.

"Will you shut the fuck up about that and open your goddamn eyes already?" Emma snapped, and the mayor looked at her in shock. "You think no one loves the Evil Queen? Well, guess what, Regina? I do!" Regina's jaw fell open along with everyone else's-except Mary-Margaret's. "Yeah, that's right. I love her, and I love the clingy younger version of you, too. Want to know why? Because I love _you_ , Regina! I love every part of you! I've seen you at your best and your worst, and I've loved you in both cases. I love the shit out of you, Regina." A snort of laughter came from Henry, but he swallowed it quickly. He didn't want to ruin this moment. The moment he'd, honestly, seen coming a mile away and had been waiting for his mothers to face up to. Maybe now they'd quit hiding their relationship from him. He couldn't believe they ever thought they were being sneaky. It was almost an insult to his intelligence. "You... You love me?" Regina breathed, eyes wide.

"Yes!" Emma shouted exasperatedly. "I love you, Regina. I've loved for, like, ever. I know you don't feel the same way about me, too, and I'm not saying it expecting anything back. You just need to know that people care about you for who you are, flaws and all." Tears rushed into her eyes, and her throat tightened. "You've got to deal with this, Regina, because you cannot just fucking go away. I don't give a fuck what happens to me, but you do not get to leave me like this. I need you. Please, Regina-"

Her words were silenced when a pair of plump, red lips pressed against hers firmly. Regina cradled the Savior's face in her hands, wiping her tears away with her thumbs. Emma fell into the kiss, wrapping her arms around Regina and pulling her closer to her. She needed to feel her. To know she was still there, and this was real.

The two women did not break apart until the pulse of iridescent light shot out from their lips, blowing their hair back and sending an almost electric shock through their bodies. They jumped back from each other, eyes wide and breathing forced.

"What the fuck was that?" Emma gasped.

"True Love's kiss," Henry grinned widely, and they both looked to him. "Ma, you just saved Mom." Sure enough, when Emma looked around the vault, she didn't see the Evil Queen or the young woman from before. Looking to Regina, she smiled when she saw her no longer gripping at her chest in pain as she had done before.

"You're alright," she whispered.

Regina nodded, still shocked. "I am. I'm... me. All of me." She looked up at the blonde, and rush of tears filled her eyes. "I love you, Emma." She ran back into her True Love's waiting arms, and they kissed again, holding each other tightly.

"What the hell's going on here?" David asked. "And why am I the only one seems shocked by it?"

"Our daughter's True Love is the woman who tried to kill us for years," Mary-Margaret sighed, taking his hand. "It's a lot to take in at first, but you get used to it."

His jaw dropped. "You knew about this?" She nodded, and he looked to Henry. "And you, too?"

"Pretty much," he shrugged.

"What?" Regina looked to her son, eyebrows raised. "You knew?"

"Of course," he answered.

"How did you figure it out?" Emma asked.

"You two aren't as slick as you think," he grimaced. "Seriously, guys. My bedroom is right down the hall from Mom's. You should look into a soundproofing spell or something."

"I thought we were quiet," Regina muttered while Emma nearly choked on her son's admission, eyes wide and mortified. If there was one thing she'd come to understand since breaking the curse, it was how awkward and scarring it was to find your parents in bed.

"Sorry about that, kid," she said as her face turned a bright shade of scarlet.

"How about we give your moms some privacy, hm?" Mary-Margaret suggested. "We could go to Granny's and get something to eat. I imagine Emma and Regina have a lot of things to discuss."

"Yeah, discuss," Henry mumbled with a snort. "That's what the kids are calling it these days."

David joined his daughter in strangled coughing. "Can we please not talk about that? I know this is apparently old news for everyone else, but I'm still trying to process this. That is my baby girl, after all." He shot Regina a hard look before joining Henry and Mary-Margaret outside the mausoleum. "Don't think you're off the hook. You and I will be having a very serious talk about your intentions with my daughter."

"Dad!" Emma groaned, hiding her embarrassed face in her hands. " _Go!_ "

He left, but not before gripping his sword threateningly and mouthing to Regina, "Got my eyes on you."

Regina laughed at the completely humiliated woman in her arms.

"I'm sorry about that," Emma said. "He gets like that-he was super weird around Hook, too. I've told him to cut out the over-protective dad trope a million times. I mean, it's not like I'm a teenager anymore. It's so embarrassing."

"But you kind of love it, too, don't you?" Regina said knowingly.

Emma couldn't stop the smallest of smiles. "Yeah, kind of."

"So," Regina sighed. "You love the shit out of me, do you?"

The blonde chuckled. Sometimes, her ineloquence surprised even herself. "Yep, and it appears that you love the shit out of me, too."

"Well, it's rather difficult not to, dear," the mayor said back and combed her fingers through long, golden locks of hair. "Thank you, by the way."

"For what?" Emma frowned.

"For dealing with me at my worst," Regina answered, and the Sheriff's eyes softened. "You put up with a lot from me, I know. I'm not exactly the easiest person to love."

"I don't want easy," Emma whispered back. "I want you." She kissed her lips tenderly. "All of you." Wrapping her arms tighter around the brunette's waist, she pressed her lips to her throat, dragging a soft gasp out of the other woman's mouth. "I love you, Regina."

Regina smiled. "I'll never get tired of hearing that."

"Good," Emma grinned into her skin, "because I'll never get tired of saying it." She looked up into Regina's eyes. "Now, if I'm not mistaken, we started something a week ago, and we never got to finish it."

In the blink of an eye, the two women were transported into the mayor's bedroom. Grinning widely, Regina pushed her still slightly dazed True Love down onto her bed and crawled on top of her.

"Then, I suggest we pick up where we left off." Looking down at the smiling blonde, she felt a warmth swell into her chest that she hadn't felt with anyone before-not Robin, not even Daniel. Brushing a stray strand of hair from Emma's face, she smiled. "I love you, Emma Swan."

"I love you, too, Regina Mills," the Sheriff answered and slid her hands beneath her partner's shirt smoothly. Leaning up, she kissed along her jawline. "I'd rather love you naked right now, though."

Regina laughed and burrowed her face in Emma's neck while the blonde held her close on top of her. In that moment, they both realized that there was no safer place in the world for either of them but there. In each other's arms. Wrapped up in their love.

"Who would've thought it," Regina said with a small smile. "The Evil Queen who stole away everyone else's happiness would get hers from the very Savior who broke the curse."

"It's pretty poetic, actually," Emma said back, tucking a silky curl of dark hair behind the mayor's ear. "Honestly, I can't think of anything more beautiful. Talk about a story of hope and redemption." She smiled and nuzzled her nose into the brunette's cheek lovingly. "Welcome to our happy ending, your Majesty."

The Queen smiled widely. There was no one else she could imagine spending the rest of forever with than her Savior, Emma Swan.

* * *

So there it is, guys. The end. I hope you all like it-I think it's pretty fitting. I've enjoyed writing this more than you all can know, and I've loved reading your responses to it. This may be my first fan fic, but I've got a strong feeling that it won't be my last. Thank you guys for following along with me. And let me know if you think maybe there should be an epilogue to this. I've never been a huge fan of tying stories up in a neat package at the end- *cough Deathly Hallows cough*-but I feel like this story could go on maybe an extra chapter. If, for no other reason, than just to write some fluff since this story has been kind of angsty throughout. For now, though, I'm marking her as complete.


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